Hello Stranger
by omgcrash
Summary: Haley had lost herself becoming a stranger in her own skin. She didn’t know who she was or where she fit anymore. That was until a true stranger came into her life helping her find the real Haley James.
1. Sometimes, the truth is stranger

**A/N: **_Hey everybody, this your old pal Crashspike22 stopping by with a brand new story that was co-written by fellow Baley writer extraordinaire OMGOTH23. How did this happen, you ask? Well, I got stuck while writing You Found Me and OMGOTH23 well, I don't know right because I am the only one here for this intro, lol. So anyway, this story takes place during beginning of Season 3 and there will be some changes all along the way. Yes there are millions out there but this one is different from all the others, so take a look…Plus with the lack of Raley fics on FF, I figure we can corner the market! Enough with my babbling on with the show…_

_Disclaimer – All Praise to Mark and the CW….Season 7 better not suck…_

**Hello Stranger – Chapter One - Sometimes, the truth is stranger....**

The sun crept into the window of the guest room at the Scott House. The light slowly made its way into the face of Haley James, which caused her to grumble. She reached for her phone and checked to see what time it was.

"7:30am…" Haley groaned and put the pillow back over her face. Famous rockstars never get up before noon. She sat from her place on the bed and the empty feeling returned to the pit of her stomach once again. She took a deep breath in and let it out slowly. She wasn't a rockstar anymore. She had given up that life to come back to Tree Hill and more importantly back to her estranged husband Nathan. She just couldn't take being without him anymore and she felt like she needed to be back where she always belonged.

"But things don't always go the way you plan them..." Haley tossed the comforter off of her and put her feet on the floor. She yawned and tried to stretch a little. The bed was a little stiff and she had spent the night tossing and turning. It felt like she had only been asleep for 20 minutes. And now here she was awake and alone. Waking in a quiet room inside of an even quieter house was a little strange to her. When she was on the tour there was always someone around. A manager, a roadie, make-up artist, hairstylist or even Chris Keller. Now it was just her and her thoughts. As she sat there with her thoughts the first thing that jumped into her head was Nathan and the look on his face when he opened the door a couple of nights ago, _God he looked so disgusted_ …

Haley jumped out of the bed quickly and went into the bathroom that was attached to the guest room. She caught a glimpse of her reflection in the mirror and she felt her tears forming in her eyes. God, is this all she had left? All alone and wishing that she could take back the last 4 months? She turned on the cold water and splashed on her face, hoping to rinse the tears out of her eyes. She grabbed a towel from the rack and rubbed against her face. She held it there for a moment enjoying the darkness that covering her face brought. It almost felt like she was hiding from the rest of the world. She wiped her face off and put the towel back on the bar.

Her eyes looked into the mirror staring at the dark pools she used to recognize. The twinkle that used to fill her eyes was long gone, the last time she remembered seeing it was right before the tour, _what I wouldn't do to take that back._ She placed her hands on either side of the sink and took another deep breath in. She could do this. And maybe if she said it enough times, maybe she would start to believe it.

"Haley?"

She knew the voice that was calling her name before she even went back into the bedroom. It was too early in the morning for her to have to deal with seeing him. She looked in the mirror and ran her fingers through her hair. Haley walked into the bedroom and there was her husband, Nathan Scott.

"Morning," Nathan mumbled without even looking at her. He found it easier to deal with their current living situation if he avoided all eye contact, he knew it was harsh but he had to look out for himself.

"Hey, it's good to see you. Did you sleep okay?" Haley asked. He wouldn't even look at her. She was standing right in front of him and he wouldn't even acknowledge her. She crossed her arms and tried to muster up some of that rockstar swagger she used to have. It wasn't really working but she still was going to try it because quite frankly it was the last defense she had left.

"So look, I think you should find somewhere else to stay," Nathan said avoiding Haley's question, he couldn't deal with small talk there was too much racing through his head and he needed to get his point across without getting distracted. He started playing with his ring finger, it was like his tell or something. She always knew he was going to tell the truth when he did that.

"Nathan, I don't have anywhere else to go…I want to be here with you..." Haley tried to walk over to him but he took a step back and held up his hand to keep her from coming any closer. Her heart clenched as he pulled away from her, this is what she hated the most, when he was afraid to be close to her. When they first started dating Nathan would come to Haley for comfort, they would cuddle and it seemed that both of their problems would go away, she was his comfort. But now that he couldn't even be close to her, she knew things were drastically different. It killed her.

"That's not going to happen."

"Nathan, I never wanted this...if I could…" Haley stammered trying to find the right words but somehow she knew that it wouldn't matter. She could tell from the look in Nathan's eyes that nothing she could say was going to change his mind.

"If you could what?" Nathan asked the agitation evident. He had heard it all, numerous times in fact. She would tell him how sorry she was for leaving him, for hurting him, for never intending to hurt him but the bottom line was that she didn't come home when he asked her to. No matter how many times she apologized for the tour he still couldn't let it go.

"Take back the tour?"

"Yes, I would take back the tour, Nathan. I would give anything to take back the choices that I made. Then we wouldn't be like this…" Haley knew that she wasn't going to change his mind but she had to try. She still loved him and she could tell that underneath his anger, love for her was still there. She gently touched Nathan's shoulder but he quickly pulled away from her touch.

"I don't want you to take back the goddamn tour, Haley! You can't honestly think that I want you to do that!" Nathan practically screamed. Through all the heartache he was proud of Haley for going after her dream.

When they first met she was the quiet confident type, one of the things he admired about her the most. When she had left for the tour he was devastated, swearing to himself that he was going to be mad at her forever but he simply couldn't. He pushed her into making a choice and at the end of the day; Haley chose her dream over him. Haley had gone after her dream. He didn't want her to take that back, if the tables were turned he wouldn't take it back.

But he couldn't forgive her for not choosing him.

"The tour was your dream, Haley and you did it because you wanted a chance to live it. I don't want you to have to take that back but don't think that I am going to just pretend that you didn't leave me here…I can't be here with you ...It's not fair…"

"So it is fair to ask me to leave? Nathan my home is here. You are my home and now you're telling me that I can't stay here with you?" Haley tried to get as mad as Nathan was but she couldn't. She didn't want to fight with him anymore and as soon as the words left her mouth she wished for them back. She took another step closer to him and tried to look into his eyes. When she finally caught them she saw the man that she had married. The man that she had given her virginity to, the man that she loved and she knew that she couldn't just let him go.

"I never stopped loving you, Nathan. I know that you didn't stop loving me." She whispered hoping that he could see that her going on the tour didn't mean that she didn't love him. Nathan stood there looking at her and for a moment Haley thought that maybe she had gotten through the wall that he built up over the last few months.

"You're right Haley I never stopped loving you but I did stop caring about you. The minute you decided that going on a tour was more important than our life is the very second that I stopped caring about what you did with your life. Because that minute is the minute you stopped being my wife. You left me and didn't even think of how this would affect me. All you cared about was you and that's not what a marriage is about. A marriage is about two people creating a life together, not separately," Nathan let out a frustrated sigh from seeing how much his words were hurting Haley. He saw the hurt and regret pouring from her eyes but he knew he had to do this so he took a deep breath and continued.

"You are my first love and no matter what you will always be a part of me. But after all that I've seen I know what happens when you try to make something that is broken work. Look at my mom and Dan! I know that I can't do 'us' anymore, not after everything that we've been through, not after everything I went through when you left. I won't be like Dan, I won't let 'us' become my parents," he paused taking a couple deep breaths, everything he was saying was hitting a new nerve. Never before had he thought that his and Haley's relationship could come even close to what his parents went through. His relationship with Haley was supposed to prove to them that he could do better than they had.

"I finally opened my heart to someone and now I have nothing but this pain that I cannot describe... I will always love you but I can't be with you and that's why you have to find someplace else to stay, so you can start living your life… without me…" Nathan turned around and walked out of the bedroom leaving Haley just standing there.

Haley waited until she heard Nathan's car pulled out of the driveway and then she picked up her guitar case from the floor putting it on the bed. She used the back of her hand to wipe a tear from her eye, _damn tears._ She opened the case and took out her wedding ring from underneath the guitar. She held it in the palm of her hand tightly and closed her eyes. She didn't know how to feel right now.

Happy?

Sad?

"Lost…" Haley sat the ring on the nightstand, picked up her stuff and walked out of the bedroom feeling more alone than ever before.

_**About two hours later…**_

Haley had been walking around town still in shock from what had happened at Nathan's house. Was she divorced? Was she going to be the only 17 year old divorcee in Tree Hill? _That's highly likely._ What was everyone else going to say when they found out? _I bet they wouldn't be surprised._ Where the hell was she going to stay?

"Maybe a nice box on the roof of the café?" Haley smirked to herself as she continued walking. Her parents had sold the house and had been AWOL since her and Nathan's party last year. She thought about going to stay with Lucas but she didn't feel like having him preach to her over and over again. Haley looked up from the ground and saw that her feet had taken her to the old apartment that she used to share with Nathan. She had forgotten what Nathan had told her about the lease so she figured that maybe she could stay there. As she walked up to the apartment she couldn't help but notice the black Denali in Nathan's old parking space.

"What the hell…" Haley mumbled as she walked into her former apartment. When she first noticed the front door was wide open she found it completely strange. Even stranger were all of the boxes and garment bags all over the place. None of her things were there and neither was Nathan's. She continued looking around for any signs of her stuff.

"Holy shit, you're her."

Haley turned and saw where the voice had come from. Standing in the apartment was this tall, thin redhead woman. She couldn't help but think that with a different face she could have been Brooke's redheaded twin. Haley could already tell that she had an air of confidence about her if her appearance was any hint, _definitely a Brooke-alike._ The girl looked like she was just lounging around but at the same time she looked like she had just came from a photo shoot despite the fact that she was wearing a pair of blue jeans and a white baby doll t-shirt.

"Who am I?" Haley still amazed the beauty of the girl standing in front of her, _beauty? Since when do I notice other girls' beauty?_

"Your face is on the wall," Brooke-a-like answered.

"Oh yeah…"Haley sighed bowing her head at the memory of what that wall used to mean. Instead of the love and hope the wall used to represent, the heartbreak and loss were the only emotions evident. She walked over to where the picture of her and Nathan's faces used to be. It had been covered with pink paint, she cringed at the sight, only being able to see her eyes and smile coming through the wretched color. She took a deep breath and ran her fingers through her hair desperately hoping that this guilt building up in her gut would go away. She looked around the room and the memories of her past echoing from every wall.

"And why are you loitering in my apartment?" Brooke-a-like asked as she came back from the bedroom.

"Just remembering," Haley sighed once again. It seemed to be a pattern lately, looking around the quaint town remembering everything that used to be but only seeing all that had changed. Remembering what her life used to be liked before the tour, how simple it was, but now everything was just complicated and blurred.

"Whatever, you're in my way…" Brooke-a-like just rolled her eyes and continued moving her things from the living room.

"I am sorry, I used to live here and I just…I don't know what I was looking for..." Haley continued staring at the wall. _I never thought I would be the one to screw up this relationship._ Yet here she was standing in her and Nathan's apartment only it wasn't her and Nathan's apartment anymore. It was this redhead's and there was nothing she could do about it.

"Well, maybe you can look for whatever you're looking for somewhere else. Like the parking lot you know the one outside of MY apartment..." The redhead snapped.

"I know this is a weird situation for the both of us but you don't have to be so mean. This place meant a lot to me…" Haley started to say but she was cut off by the redhead.

"Couldn't have meant that much…if it did you would still be living here. You must have done something really screwed up to lose a place like this…"

"You don't know me so don't judge me," Haley bit back hating that this stranger was right. _How in the hell does Brooke-alike know that I screwed up? Jeez I really did screw up if a complete stranger can tell I royally fucked up._

"Look if you don't want anything else I really have a lot to do…so…" The redhead's tone had softened some but still Haley could tell that it was time for her to leave.

_How did it go so wrong_, Haley's silent tears fell from her eyes as she made her way towards the door. She swiped at the tears, the last thing she needed was some strange girl seeing her cry over something that she possibly couldn't understand. As she neared the door taking one last glance at the apartment suddenly feeling like a stranger in her home, _that couldn't be truer._ Ever since her return to Tree Hill she had felt like a stranger in her own skin, she was no longer comfortable when someone would glance at her from afar. Before everything, before Lucas joined the basketball team, before she and Nathan started dating she was able to walk proud not caring what others thought of her, she wasn't afraid to express her thoughts and feelings but now well now she wanted to hide who she was, who she had become. She couldn't act the way she wanted to, talk to who she wanted to, and she couldn't say the things she wanted to.

"I guess I'll just find a hotel room, I think I have enough money," Haley sighed and slung her bag back over her shoulder once more.

"Thanks for letting me look around. It was nice meeting you…" She looked back once more at her place and gave the Brooke-alike a sad smile as she exited her old home and her past.

**A/N: That's the end of the first chapter. Reviews are amazingly nice, hint hint ;D**


	2. The Inner Ghosts of a Troubled Past

**A/N: So we're back with another chapter *squeals of joy* this is OMGOTH23 just for the record. We seem to be switching off leaving A/Ns. Anyways, so this chapter gets more into the story. Some adult materials are mentioned in this chapter living up to the M rating.**

**That's it really so ENJOY!!! **

**Almost forgot to tell you BLOD = FLASHBACK**

**Hello Stranger - Chapter 2 - The Inner Ghosts of a Troubled Past**

Twenty minutes later found Haley checking into the only hotel Tree Hill offered, the Nevermore At Home motel. "Yeah right," Haley laughed bitterly at the irony that had become her life. She was back in Tree Hill, her supposed home, and she was checking into a motel room, _oh the irony. No time to dwell…I just hope I don't know whoever works here, how embarrassing would that be…I guess it wouldn't be that bad it's not like I have an outstanding reputation to uphold…that was shot the minute Chris Keller and that damn tour came into my life._ Haley's thoughts continued to wander as she made her way to the front desk.

"Hello?" The clerk asked waving his hand in front of Haley's face. He had been trying to get her attention for the last minute but she continued to stare blankly at the wall behind him.

"Oh sorry," Haley blushed at being caught lost in thought.

"That's perfectly fine, I was just wondering if you came here for a room or to marvel at this amazing wallpaper," he joked liking the obvious embarrassment the young woman in front of him was experiencing.

"I'm here for a room. Are there any available?"

"I think I can squeeze you in," he chuckled lightheartedly. Truth be told there hadn't been many customers since the place opened, draw backs to opening a motel in a small town.

"Thank you," Haley smiled politely, it had to be her first genuine smile since she returned to Tree Hill and all because of a guy named Bill, or so his nametag said. Haley reached her hand out for the key card that Bill handed to her.

"You're gonna be in room twenty-three. It's gonna be on the second floor all the way at the end," Bill smiled politely.

_Does everything have to remind me of Nathan?_ "Thanks," she smiled weakly before leaving the front desk with her luggage. "Well isn't this marvelous?" Haley asked herself sarcastically. The room wasn't terrible but it certainly wasn't what she was used to. On the tour she was living in the fanciest rooms in the nicest hotel the location had to offer. She walked inside taking in the lone double bed, lone chair, and lone dresser, _just another reminder that I'm alone._ She didn't even bother to unpack, it would make this living situation that much more permanent. She sighed as her body collapsed into the stiff double bed, _definitely not like the tour._ "I never would've thought that I would be wishing I was back on that tour."

"**Another show down a million to go," Haley sighed entering her hotel room. She couldn't complain this is what she wanted. The screaming fans, big hotel rooms, famous rockstars, and all the partying she could wish for. As the days went on she found that she was secluding herself from everyone else. Like tonight, Chris had invited her to a little party he was throwing in his hotel room but Haley had denied, once again, wanting to head straight to her room so she could think of the life she gave up. **

**She sighed as she fell into the plush king sized bed, **_**how did everything go wrong? I was just going after my dream, why can't anyone be happy for me?**_** Another sigh escaped her lips, just the thought of what Nathan was doing at this very moment was driving her crazy; **_**is he thinking about me? Does he even care anymore? Will he ever take me back?**_** "Fat chance."**

**Haley tried blocking all the thoughts and images of Nathan by closing her eyes, listening to the beating of her heart. She was sure that it was beating slower than it normally did; it was like the absence of Nathan was causing her to slowly die. **_**Can I get any more depressing?**_** "This is ridiculous!" **

Haley tossed her pillows across the room. All she wanted was some peace and quiet. Just something to make her mind stop going over and over what happened with Nathan. She grabbed her bag from the floor and started to shuffle through its contents. Were things really bad enough for her to go here? Did she really need to start this again? She had promised herself that her tour life would stay just that, but now, now tour life seemed easier than reality. And she desperately needed a break from reality.

"I know they are in here…" She mumbled to herself. As she continued looking a familiar panic starting creeping up from the small of her back and into the hairs on her neck. What if she couldn't find them? There was no way she would be able to sit there all night long reliving every second of the last few hours of her life. Analyzing each choice she made and how there was nothing she could do to make this better. And on some level, she felt like this was what she deserved. The darkness that had seemed to be following her since she left the tour was beginning to take root in her mind. And every second that she sat here, the feeling was growing stronger and stronger. She couldn't sit there in this feeling anymore. It was fucking eating away at her soul and if she couldn't find the goddamn bottle in this fucking bottomless pit of a purse…

"**Hey kid, you look like shit." **

**Haley hadn't even noticed that someone had come in the dressing room. It was her favorite roadie, Tripp. He was wearing his standard black tour shirt, stonewash blue jeans and a backwards Wreckers hat. He and his cocky smirk always seemed to show up whenever Haley was feeling like shit. But even a visit from him couldn't distract her from her thoughts. She had been sitting there with her head down crying again. Nathan had came to see her and she told him to wait right there until she finished her set. However when she came back, he wasn't there. She just wanted him to wait for the couple minutes it would take to play her three fucking songs and he couldn't even do that for her. She should have known that was going to happen. As happy as this tour was making her, it felt like she was losing herself. Her mind was constantly going, Nathan, the music, leaving Tree Hill, being alone…**

"**Haley, you still with me here?" Tripp asked with slight concern. Even though Haley had only been with the tour for a short time he felt the need to look out for her, to help her in any way he could.**

"**Sorry…I was just thinking…" Haley quickly snapped out of her daze, **_**yeah, thinking about how much life sucks…no not life, just my life.**_

"**What about that guy who just breezed out of here?"**

"**Yeah, he's my…" Haley paused for moment. She was going to say husband but it didn't feel right. Why couldn't he have just stay? Did he really hate her that much? **

"**Haley, kid, you need to get out of your head. You stay in there any longer you're gonna pop," Tripp chuckled. He'd heard stories about Haley's old days as 'Tutor Girl' but he never believed it until now. Now he was able to see the extent to Haley's thought process, or at least how much time she put into her thoughts, **_**I have just the remedy for that.**_

"**Tell me about, I just haven't been sleeping that well and stop calling me kid, you're only four years older than me…" **

"**Yeah, but I have traveled these roads longer than you and I know exactly what you need," he said with a smirk.**

"**I know that smirk and just like I told Keller, there is no way I am sleeping with you."Haley rolled her eyes at the mere suggestion of her sleeping with him, **_**why must all guys think with their other head?**_** Tripp started laughing as soon as Haley finished her sentence.**

"**Please, Haley…you couldn't handle the Tripp. But I think you just need to get out of your head for awhile." Tripp reached into his pocket and tossed a prescription bottle at Haley. She caught it and read the label.**

"**Vicodin****? What am I supposed to do with this?" Haley asked feeling a little insulted that Tripp would try to give her some pills. Just because she was on tour, didn't mean that she should start living **_**that**_** life. The tour had been like a nonstop party, even on stage she managed to have some of the most fun she'd had in her life. But this was pushing it, she had partied with The Wreckers and even Keller but she only drank slightly, always being the light weight, but she never accepted anyone's offer of drugs. It just wasn't her. She was responsible straightedge 'Tutor Girl', always doing what's expected, always doing what's right. Was she really going to risk that by take these? Taking them would just secure that her life in Tree Hill was over.**

"**Nah, Hales. You just have a lot going on up there which is why you aren't sleeping. So when you are sitting in the hotel tonight and the thoughts get too loud, those things will turn it down. Or you can just continue on your path to becoming an insomniac…" Tripp saluted her and walked out of the dressing room. **

**Haley held the bottle in her hand and stared at the pills inside, **_**am I really gonna resort to pills? **_** She gave the bottle a little shake. She didn't want to start having to take pills to deal with her thoughts but she really couldn't take one more night of thinking about everything that had happened. She gripped the top of the bottle and gave it a twist. She dumped one into the palm of her hand stared at it. **

"**How bad could it be?"**

"Finally…" Haley said as her fingers found the pill bottle. She pulled them out as a wave of relief came crashing over her. Haley got off of the bed and walked into the bathroom. How did she ever live without these? It was like everything was less terrible after she took a few of these. Everything became simple when she was filled with these marvelous little pills. Her thoughts grew quieter as her body grew number; it was the perfect cure for the 'Haley Blues'.

At first one pill would do it for her but as the month continued she had been taking them more often and more at a time. She dumped three pills into her hand and tossed them into her mouth. She turned on the water and put her face down by the faucet and took a few sips. As she swallowed down the concoction, Haley saw herself in the mirror again. Is this what her life has become now? Her eyes were red and puffy from all of the crying, the only twinkle to them was the unshed tears, and she looked like she had been run down into the ground. She still felt like she wanted to just die but the longer she stood there, the more wobbly she started to feel. The room started to spin around slowly at first but the more steps she took forward the faster the room started to spin.

"Better…" Haley sighed as she fell onto the floor face first. Finally she was sleeping and finally she was given her peace of mind. No thoughts of the tour, music, Tree Hill, school. But most importantly she wasn't thinking about Nathan fucking Scott.

~HS~

"Damn…"

She couldn't stop thinking about that girl who came by the apartment earlier. Rachel Gatina had been tossing and turning for the last hour or so. She just wanted to get some sleep. However, every time she closed her eyes, the only thing she kept seeing was that girl's face. It was almost like her subconscious mind was trying to tell her something. Rachel turned onto her side again and tried to force herself to fall asleep.

"This is ridiculous! I haven't been so caught up on a girl since…maybe I'll count sheep," Rachel sighed cutting off her own thought. She closed her eyes yet again only this time instead of 'singer girl's' face little white fluffy sheep were jumping over a little white fence. "One, two, three, four…" she continued to count out loud sighing happily as it seemed to be working. "What the hell?" Rachel cried when all the little sheep heads turned into 'singer girls' face with that adorable sad smile she had perfected, _how can someone so gorgeous be so sad?_

"Fuck!" She wasn't going to fall asleep anytime soon. She got out of bed and went to the living room taking a good look around, _maybe I'll be able to organize a bit more, that should ease my mind._ Now that everything was out of the boxes and bags the place looked smaller to her. But it didn't matter, no matter how big or how small it was still hers.

"More or less…" She smirked as she walked over to the pink catastrophe on her wall. From underneath the pink smears she could still see the traces of the girl's eyes and smile. Whatever she did must have broken the poor guy's heart into a million pieces. She couldn't help but wonder what happened to make him do something like that.

"Better yet what am I supposed to do with it?"

She didn't hate the mural, it was a reminder of how powerful love could be. It showed the passion love created and the devastation it left behind. The painting, from what she could see, was amazing; _the artist must've worked hard on it._ But she couldn't shake the feeling that there was more to it than meets the eye.

"There has to be more behind it," Rachel mused, _why else would this guy take the time to paint over it, to ruin it? _Obviously she moved away, but is it all that bad for someone to move, to take in a change of scenery? _Maybe she just needed an escape like I did? _ _I have to stop thinking about her!_

"Right then Rachel, let's get organized." With a clap of her hands Rachel started to hustle around the apartment moving things here and there, kitchen stuff in the kitchen, bathroom stuff in the bathroom, bedroom stuff in the bedroom. "I don't understand why people complain about moving, this is cake."

An hour passed and Rachel was just about finished with placing everything in its rightful room. "Tomorrow after school I'll finish packing everything. But first I need to find a hiding place for this," she said with a sigh picking up a shoe box. "Where to hide it? Where does anyone hide their past? Oh god, the small town effect is already setting in, I'm talking to myself!"

"Right then, back on task," she looked around the living room, _nah too public._ She moved on to the hallway closet, _more private but not private enough…hmmmm, AH-HA the bedroom closet._ She scurried into the bedroom, it seemed like the box was burning her hands. It unnerved her being so close to the past she had so desperately escaped. Without much care she threw it onto the top shelf only to have it come crashing back down into her hands. "What the…" the box already on the top shelf catching her attention. Placing her box of secrets on the ground she grabbed the mystery box taking it with her to her bed.

Hesitating slightly, after all this box may have belonged to 'singer girl'; she opened it to find what had to be close to a hundred newspaper articles. "Not what I was expecting."

**Local Girl gets Chance at Stardom**

Local teen Haley James Scott, 16, was given the opportunity of a lifetime. The Wreckers,

Michelle Branch and Jessica Harp were recently in town performing at Tric. Mrs. Scott…

"Holy fuck she was MARRIED!" Rachel screamed to the empty apartment.

…was recognized by the duo for her amazing vocals and all around musical talent. Michelle

was quoted as saying "she has an amazing raw talent that the world needs to see. She's able

to fill her audience with such emotions, it's overwhelming. We offered her a chance to come

on tour with us in hopes that she will be signed." Haley James Scott, formerly Haley James,

was recently wed to Nathan Scott, Tree Hills chance for a state championship. There is no

word if Mrs. Scott has accepted the offer but…

"Shit!" Rachel sighed. She continued to shuffle through the articles, each headline repeating the praise of Haley and her continuing success on the tour. She paused coming across a heading that shocked her, well not so much shocked but clarified things.

**Haley James Leaves Tour**

New voice on the scene Haley James, also known as Haley James Scott, didn't appear at last

nights show with The Wreckers. Michelle was asked about Mrs. Scott's absence. "Haley left

earlier in the day. She realized that the touring life wasn't for her. She went home to her family."

The mood back stage was solemn, it seems the absences of Mrs. Scott has gotten to all those

involved with the tour. She was an amazing talent and we can only hope that she returns one day.

"She left the tour for him," Rachel sighed; _this can't even be half the story._ "My baggage is carry-on size compared to hers." Baggage was a funny thing, no matter how hard you tried to leave it behind it was always with you, mocking you, haunting you. Her baggage paled in comparison to Haley's. Haley had left her husband for a tour, Rachel, well Rachel had issues back home but at least she wasn't married.

"The poor girl…" she trailed off, _the poor girl? Since when do I care about what happens to others? I'm Rachel fucking Gatina! I am the Queen Bitch…wow that was harsh._ "Reality check, I'm never going to see her again."

Rachel sighed, _now I just have to worry about school tomorrow._ With that thought Rachel shuffled back to her room all thoughts of Haley James Scott or Haley James or whatever the hell her name was washed from her brain. The only thing running through her mind was ways to make this life better than her past life.

**So that's the end of the second chapter.**

**So, what'd ya think? Good? Bad? Definitely not what you expecting…right? **

**The next chapter there will be more Haley/Rachel interaction just so you have an idea of what to expect.**

**Please let us know what you think by clicking on that little rectangle and leaving your thoughts.**

**=D**


	3. Bitches and Friends

**A/N – Hey everybody this is Crashspike again. Thanks for all of the reviews and the support. This chapter is a little longer and it has Haley and Rachel actually talking, lol. **

**On with the show….**

**Hello Stranger - Chapter 3 – Bitches and Friends…**

"BEEP BEEP BEEP" the alarm clock blared through the quiet apartment waking the sleeping beauty with a mumble.

"Why couldn't you give me five more fucking minutes?" Rachel glared at the alarm clock while shutting it off. She reluctantly pulled her tired body from the comfort of her bed going into a full body stretch. She needed the extra five minutes. It seemed that after a rough night of tossing and turning she was finally able to put her mind at ease well not at ease but enjoying the images of Haley doing very naughty things.

"At least she's not tormenting me anymore…well at least not in a bad way," she chuckled to herself remembering some of the 'R-rated' things her and 'dream Haley' had engaged in. What she would do to make her dreams come true. "I guess a cold shower is in order this morning."

Padding over to the bathroom Rachel turned on the water making sure that it stayed at a nice cool temperature. She didn't need her body being all worked up on the first day of school, her nerves would be enough. It was strange, Rachel Gatina was never nervous, but the thought of being able to start with a clean slate frightened her. _What if this doesn't work? What if someone finds out about…don't think about it. You stop thinking about it and soon it'll vanish, right?_

She stepped under the cool water, the chill running through her body ceasing all thoughts of her past and future lives. All she could think about was the cute little blonde who had stumbled into her life and maybe even her heart; _I wonder what she's doing?_

~HS~

The next morning arrived and Haley James Scott was still lying on the floor where she had passed out. As she opened her eyes all she saw was carpet. Then she remembered, the pills had done the job. She was numb and her mind was blurry, just the way she liked it. A lazy smile grew across Haley's lips.

"This is nice…"

She still hadn't moved from her spot. Her body felt like a giant noodle and something about the feeling was comforting, it felt normal.

Not moving was great.

Just lying there.

On the floor.

Nothing to do.

Haley turned her head and saw that the clock said 8:15am. Good thing she was still on the tour and she didn't have to get up and be at school. Because if she had to be at school then she would only have fifteen minutes to get up and get ready for class.

"But I don't have to go to school…" Haley mumbled and turned her face back into the carpet. Then the one part of her mind that wasn't mush started to whisper to her. She tried to focus on it. But it was like trying to hear someone at the end of a tunnel. Her eyebrows furrowed and she listened again. Then she finally realized what the voice was trying to tell her.

"I have to be at school in fifteen minutes."

Haley's eyes shot open and she placed her palms flat on the floor. She wasn't used to having to move so immediately after taking the pills. She usually would just sleep it off and by the time noon rolled around she would be good to go. She gave herself one strong push and got up onto her knees. She wiped some drool from her mouth and stretched a little. Her body still felt loose but she could feel a little bit of control returning. She looked over at the clock again. It was 8:23.

"This is going to be a long day…" Haley mumbled.

~HS~

"Tree Hill High, home of the Ravens," Rachel read aloud as she drove past the sign. She looked around taking in all the new faces and surrounding. _At least it doesn't look like a total drag._ She found an open parking spot and started to pull into it when a light blue Volkswagen Beetle almost smashed into her side.

"What the hell!" Rachel screamed out the window to the driver.

"This is my spot," the driver yelled back.

"Well I don't see anyone's name written on it so I'm thinking that it's fair game," Rachel smirked upon noticing the glare she was receiving from the pissed off brunette, _I guess I'm still gonna be Rachel Gatina, Queen Bitch._ "Plus I doubt that you wanna press your luck against my car."

She watched as the Beetle pulled into reverse and sped off in the opposite direction. She just smirked as she pulled into her parking spot. "This is definitely gonna be fun."

Rachel wandered around campus trying to get a feel for everything. Just like every high school in America Tree Hill High consisted of clicks and nothing more. And like most schools it seemed the jocks ruled, the numerous sports banners being the dead give away, but not just any jocks, the basketball jokes. She glanced to her left spotting a group of them.

"It seems that I've spotted the alpha female ranting to her pack," Rachel snickered as she watched the same brunette that she pissed off not five minutes ago, _I bet she's talking about me._ She noticed the brunette point and glare in her direction, _definitely talking about me._

"Where to next?" She spotted what seemed to be a bulletin board kiosk and decided to see what the small town had to offer for fun; if not fun she would at least get a better feel for this place. Bright fliers littered every inch of the board ranging in messages of babysitting services to yearbook notices. She was about to turn away when a hot pink paper caught her eye, _hmmmm, do I dare?_

The bell rang before Rachel could even think about her options. She walked towards the entrance hoping to get through this day unscathed. Despite her hard bitchy exterior she was still a nervous girl just trying to find her place in the world. She glanced down at her schedule. There was a note attached telling her that she needed to see a Principal Turner before she head to her classes, _like I'm gonna miss out on an opportunity like this._

Rachel ducked her head as she walked past the main office, she didn't need to be told the welcome mumbo jumbo, all she needed was to find the gym. After a couple lefts and rights she found herself standing in front of a set of wooden double doors with the sign 'Gymnasium' written on a plaque. The unmistakable "CHEERLEADING TRYOUTS" sign telling her she had found the right place.

"Here goes nothing."

~HS~

The day wasn't as terrible as Haley thought it was going to be. Sure she didn't get to school until 9:30am, and had to endured all the snickering and pointing from the student body, and all of her friends seemed to be M.I.A. and she only had enough money for maybe one or two more nights at the hotel and didn't have any place to stay but, Haley knew all this was going to happen. It seemed that with each passing minute her laundry list of wrong doings grew longer and longer.

Tree Hill was just like any other small town, anytime something of significances happened the inhabitants would talk about it for weeks on end. She went on a big national tour and left it to come back home to a husband that didn't want her, gossiping was bound to happen.

"Yeah…they'll be talking about this for years…" Haley mumbled as a couple of sophomores passed behind her whispering and laughing. She wanted to say something back. Anything to try and defend herself but she didn't. What would be the point of doing that? After all they weren't the people she wanted to explain herself to.

She was standing at the door of the gym and she could hear the thumping of loud techno music from behind the doors. Brooke and Peyton were holding the cheerleader tryouts and she hadn't seen them since she came back to school. However, after standing there for the last five minutes, her body still didn't want to push those doors open.

"Come on, James. Just get it over with…"

She closed her eyes and pushed the doors open. As she walked through the hall that led to the gym, Haley started to feel uneasy. Her mind started to play out everything that could happen once she saw her friends. God, where they even her friends anymore? Nathan had been here this whole time. They had to be on his side. No one had called her or checked in with her to see how the tour was going or anything. Lucas used to call her but that had only lasted for the first two weeks. Brooke and Peyton had to know she was back in town. Everyone else knew and yet she hadn't seen them at all. Maybe they were avoiding her. Maybe they hated her now.

"Just go in there…" Haley walked into the gym looking around; _did it get bigger in here?_ She took about three steps inside when she saw them.

Brooke and Peyton.

But they hadn't seen her yet. Just the sight of them caused her to lose all of the nerve she had built up. This wasn't the place to try and talk to them. She didn't even know what to say or what not to say. She started back out of the gym, when she saw Peyton and Brooke looking straight at her. They seemed to debating on if they should go and talk to her but Haley didn't want to stand around and deal with the uncertainty anymore.

"Fuck it…" Haley turned around and tried to leave but now between her and the nearest exit stood three of the meanest cheerleaders from the squad; Theresa, Julie and Sarah to be exact.

"Shit…" Haley hissed. She knew that this was going to happen sooner or later but she was hoping more for later. It was just like eighth grade gym class all over again. Haley was outnumbered but unlike before she didn't have friends to back her up. She looked back at Brooke and it didn't look like she was going to be getting any help from her.

"Look, girls, its Haley James fresh from her tour with Michelle Branch. Wow it must be weird to be back in little ole Tree Hill…" Theresa said making the first of what was sure to be several jabs at Haley.

"OMG _the_ Haley James? Wait I thought she was married to Nathan Scott?" Julie chimed in.

"Well she was married but she left fine ass Nathan Scott behind so she could go and play rockstar. Did you get tired of playing house?" Sarah mocked.

"But now she's back in town so I guess we should all feel special because our own celebrity decided to come home…" Theresa said and then gave Haley a little shove.

"Don't touch me again." Haley said looking over her shoulder. Peyton and Brooke were just standing there with their arms crossed and whispering to each other. She was really on her own.

"And if I do, what's going to happen?" Theresa asked as she pushed Haley a little harder causing her to lose her balance and fall to the ground. Out of the corner of her eye she could see Brooke making her way towards them but Peyton was holding her back. Haley sighed and started to get to her feet when suddenly her new friend, or acquaintance, Brooke-a-like was standing between her and the cheerleaders.

"Touch her again and I will break all three of you bitches in half." Brooke-a-like growled sounding just as protective as Brooke or Peyton would if they were standing there. And like before, the redhead looked amazing today as well despite looking like she had just finished her routine for the tryout, she was still fucking beautiful; _there I go again with the beautiful remarks, what's happening to me?_

"You better watch your step, you fuck with one of us, and you fuck with all of us, carrot top." Sarah said as the redhead kept blocking the girls' path to Haley.

"You fuck with her, you fuck with me. And trust me; I am waaaay scarier than your captain over there."

"Theresa, Sarah, Julie! Get your narrow asses over here!" Brooke shouted from the other side of the gym.

"You better watch yourself." Theresa said as she and her cronies walked away.

"Bitches…" Brooke-a-like smirked and turned around to help Haley up from the ground.

"You ok?"

Haley smiled as Rachel pulled her up from the floor. The intimidation this girl held over her was still evident, her nerves were screaming that this wasn't good but her heart was telling her the exact opposite. It was nice to see that someone in this place liked her. She stood there and stared at her for a second. There was something about her that was calming but exciting at the same time.

"Thanks..."

"It was nothing; I've been putting bitches like that in their place for years." Rachel smiled. She didn't feel the need to hide behind her sass and bitchiness around this girl, she finally felt like she could be herself. She couldn't understand why anyone would want to be mean to such a sweet and talented girl. She looked down at her hand and noticed that she and Haley were still holding hands. Rachel smiled as Haley blushed and dropped her hand.

"Standing up to those three is not a 'nothing'. They have been terrorizing me since 8th grade, why did you do that? Crossing the squad isn't the safest thing to do around here," Haley asked still trying to figure out why the girl who just a few hours ago told her to leave her apartment was now trying to help her. And why the urge to touch this girl's hand was so strong.

"No one deserves to be tormented. Besides they were asking for it. They should be worshipping the ground you walk on; they're not the ones that went on a national tour..." Rachel started to say until she noticed the change in Haley's expression. The terrified look on Haley's face was enough to let her know that she had struck a nerve.

"Who told you about that?" Haley asked.

"Let me explain...I found a box in my, well your old closet and it was filled with newspaper articles about you and the tour." Rachel said hoping to calm Haley down because she looked to be on the verge of a breakdown. So she did what she could to get the focus off of Haley and back onto her.

"Oh god now you probably think I'm some kind of stalker."

"No I'm sorry that's not it at all. It's ok. Everybody knows about it and everybody has been giving me shit for it..." Haley looked over to see that Brooke and Peyton were still standing there staring at her like she was doing something wrong. She wished that they would just come over to her and say whatever was on their mind but that would mean things would have to go in her favor for a change.

"And there are a lot people who aren't happy to see me back here..." Haley said as she kept looking at them.

"Friends of yours?" Rachel followed Haley's sight line and saw Brooke and Peyton staring at them. From the way they were looking at each other, they must have been very close.

"I don't really know anymore." Haley said.

"If you don't know then you should just forget about them and move on." Rachel snapped sounding like her old self.

"What does that mean?"

"It means you were on the ground and they didn't even make a move to save you. So, then that means they aren't your friends." Rachel didn't think she was saying anything wrong. How could Haley even try to defend them?

"Thanks for the advice, I guess." Haley said wondering where that came from. After all, the girl did just save her and if she wanted to give her some advice then fine she could deal with it. They stood there in silence for another second and Haley found herself looking at every single inch of the girl standing before her.

"So….I feel bad about last night, I was just in a mood after moving and I took my bitchiness out on you." Rachel started hoping that she wasn't about to sound really desperate.

"I was thinking that if you wanted to you could room with me? Y'know seeing that I kinda kicked you out of your old home," Rachel definitely sounded desperate. _Why am I such a spazz around her?_

"What makes you think that I need your help? You don't even know me…" Haley asked. There was no reason for this girl to be offering her any help.

"Does anyone really know anyone? You were about three seconds from getting a beat down…" Rachel asked with a standoffish tone to her voice. She was actually a little hurt that Haley didn't accept her offer right away. She needed to regain some form of her bitchy exterior; she couldn't turn to mush just because the star of her dreams had just turned her down.

"Exactly no one knows me. So thanks but no thanks..." Haley snapped back. She knew that maybe she shouldn't have been so short with Brooke-a-like just then but she always acted a little grouchy when the pills finally worked their way out of her system. Plus she was tired of feeling like a charity case. She walked out of the gym and into the hallway, already cursing herself for turning down the offer.

"This isn't over." Rachel stormed out of the gym doors right after Haley. There was no way she was going to let her just walk away from her and she wasn't about to let Haley have the last word.

"What do you think they were talking about?" Peyton asked Brooke when they were finally free from the squad.

"No clue," Brooke shrugged. To be perfectly honest she wasn't concerned about Haley, if Haley was a big enough girl to go off on a national tour then she sure as hell didn't need help fighting her battles. But a part of her was irked that Rach-ho or Rachel or whoever was the one helping her. "Doesn't matter anymore, she's Rach-ho's problem now."

"She really did get under your skin," Peyton snickered at Brooke's obvious agitation.

"Whatever P. Sawyer," Brooke huffed before making her way towards the locker room.

"If she bothers you this much then why in the hell is she the newest member of the squad?" Peyton yelled after her best friend loving the huff of aggravation she received for a response.

~HS~

"You of all people should be willing to take anything you can get. I mean it's not like you have friends lining up outside of your door offering to help," Rachel snapped as she followed after Haley.

Haley stopped in her tracks. She turned around and walked right up to the redhead. She could feel her body temperature rising, the problem was she wasn't sure if it was anger towards the redhead or raw passion that was causing it.

"Who the hell do you think you are? You don't know anything about me or my friends. And if this is the best 'help' I can get, then I am better off on my own."

"Friends? You honestly think that you have friends. I didn't see your precious Brooke or Peyton running over to help you. I didn't see any of them offering you anything but dirty looks and stares," Rachel cringed at the harshness of her voice. This was not how she wanted things to go with Haley. She wanted to stop but at this point her words were flying out of her mouth, the filter between her brain and mouth turned off.

"And you're right I don't know anything about you but I was willing to find out," Rachel said with a huff. She turned on her heels and walked off with her head held high, she couldn't let Haley she that she was on the verge of tears. She couldn't believe that the young singer had such an effect on her but the only thing she wanted was to get away from her. So she went off in the direction she hoped would lead her to a bathroom.

Haley stood there as she watched the redhead walk away. Her words stung her harder than she cared to admit. This day was pretty much ruined and the only option was to bail for the last remaining hours. She wanted to go after her but she didn't want to seem desperate. She started walking towards the parking lot groaning as a tear slid down her cheek.

"I should have stayed on the fucking tour…"

She wiped her eyes and headed for the hotel.

~HS~

Haley got back to the room and she didn't know how she should feel. She had just skipped out on the rest of school because some stranger seemed to know her better than she did. It felt weird, you would think that someone would know themselves better than a stranger but the redhead had her down pat. She knew what she was thinking and knew exactly what to say to make it hurt, in a good way. It didn't bother her though. It was nice that someone was being bitchy in the right way. The entire population of THH was bitching to her about her poor choices in the past and Brooke-alike was bitching to her about what choices she made now and it was this difference that told her Brooke-alike was someone she needed to befriend.

She plopped down on the bed and for once she wasn't thinking about the tour or the N-word or her friends. The only thing she could think about was Brooke-alike. How could she have been so mean to her? She blamed it on the pills but some of that was her own defensiveness. And despite all this she was still willing to help her with the three headed cheer monster.

Not even Brooke came over to stop them.

"What the hell and I'm gonna do?" Haley screamed to the empty hotel room. She felt that same level of worry and panic that had been following her around since she got to school today. God, she wanted to take some of her favorite forget-me-pills but she only had a few left so that was out. There was only one option left.

_You're going to go over to her apartment and grovel to Brooke-alike, that's what you'll do. You don't have enough money to live in the motel for more than another day,_ Haley thought with a sigh. She was going to have to take Brooke-alike up on her offer. That is if the offer was still on the table.

~HS~

"There is no way in hell I am letting her get to me," Rachel sniffled to herself. She wiped a few stray tears that had fallen down her cheeks.

After her little encounter with Haley she decided that school wasn't worth it, she would try again tomorrow, _maybe this time I'll be able to avoid Haley._ She pealed out of the school like a bat outta hell; she needed to get away from this god awful place and fast.

"I try to be nice one fucking time and she throws it back in my face," she sighed as a few more tears fell from her eyes. "And that's what I get for trying to be nice for once in my life. Never again!"

She shook her head, _that's not true. _Rachel knew that if Haley were to come back into her life at one point in time there was no doubt in her mind that she would be nice to her. There was just something about her that made Rachel want to change her hard ass bitchy ways. She didn't know if it was her big brown doe eyes, cute button nose, pouty lips, or her sensational body but she knew that Haley James meant trouble.

"It's Haley James Scott," she sighed to herself as she pulled her Denali into her parking space.

She went inside of the apartment and dropped her bag on the floor. She sulked her way over to the couch before falling into it.

"Why does everything have to be so fucking hard?"

There was a knock at the door. "Who the hell could that be?" She begrudgingly pulled herself off the couch and made her way back over to the door. "Well well well, look who we have here."

"Hi," Haley smiled sheepishly. She still couldn't believe that she was yet again on her old door step, it was just surreal. She was about to grovel and beg to a complete stranger if she could live with her, _oh how the mighty have fallen. I guess I wasn't all that might in the first place but at least I had my pride._

_Can she be any cuter? Stop it…be a bitch._ "Have you come back to yell at me some more?" Rachel asked with a raised eyebrow. _Stay strong, fight her cuteness._

"Sorry." Haley wanted to say something more profound but words seemed to be failing her at this point. She wanted to say how she had been on edge since coming back to town and how having everyone cutting her out of their lives wasn't helping matters. She wanted to tell her how grateful she was to her for stopping the bloodletting between her and the Cheer-monster. But instead of all of that, sorry seemed to be the only thing coming out of her mouth; _I've missed too much school. Tutor Girl is never at a lack for words._

"Sorry? That's the best you can come up with?" Rachel asked her bitchy exterior coming full swing. She didn't like it but this was her natural defense, keep everyone away so she wouldn't get hurt.

"Yeah..." Haley said as she exhaled. "I am too tired to fight anymore. I was a jerk and you are right, you are the only person that has offered to help me. So I am sorry...and I hope you can forgive me."

_Wow!_ _She's actually being nice to me. That's not the twist I was expecting._ "You better know that just because you're tired doesn't mean that I'm gonna forget about what you said to me?" She asked hating that she couldn't let her walls down for like two seconds.

Haley could tell that it was going to take something drastic to breakthrough this wall that had built between them since she had left school today. She walked up to her and slid her arms around Brooke-alike's back and rested her head on the taller girl's shoulder. Her body was humming from being this close to the girl. Her body felt so strong and amazing, unlike her worn and tired one, she felt protected in her arms. Just like she had with Nathan, only this time there was no doubt in her mind that Brooke-alike would do anything to protect her. After all she had already saved her without even knowing her.

"Thank you for protecting me...and I am sorry if I hurt you earlier."

Rachel's mind went to mush, _she's hugging me. _It was like every fiber of her being was about to explode with excitement. Haley was hugging her and there she was standing like a statue doing absolutely nothing in this opportune moment. Without telling them to her arms wrapped around the smaller girl like it was natural, like she was meant to be holding her.

"Don't worry about it," Rachel sighed relishing in how perfectly they seemed to fit together, _snap outta it Gatina you're letting your guard down. _She pulled back swiftly noticing the startled look on Haley's face.

"But don't think the next time I'll be so forgiving," Rachel said as she stepped back into her apartment. She noticed that Haley wasn't following her.

"You coming or what?"

"Yeah," Haley said as she hastily grabbed her bag and rushed into the apartment before Brooke-alike changed her mind.

"I'm Rachel by the way," she said with a grin before closing the door. Rachel knew that by letting Haley stay with her she was risking the chance of letting Haley into her heart but at this point in time, she was willing to take that chance.

**Well, that was a fun ride and we are only three chapters in. I hope everyone is enjoying the story so far. **

**Feel free to review or complain, I can handle both, lol **

**See ya next time…**


	4. A Step in the Blurry Direction…

**A/N: Hello to all you readers out there!!! This is OMGOTH23 again. So if you've made it this far in the story thank you so much for reading, we absolutely love the attention this story is getting considering the unusual coupling. But anyways if you've made it this far you're in for a treat, Raley is amped up in this chapter (read the title and I think you'll get what I'm getting at). **

**I know that updates have been on the speedy side for this story but that might change. I am a college student trying to make my way in the world. And classes started today and I already have homework (sobs and cries). So what I'm trying to tell you is I will most likely be bombarded with homework as the weeks pass but that will NOT stop me from working on this one or any of my other stories (I know some of you are thinking that I haven't updated my other ones in a while but I'm working on them). This is just a warning for the time in between updates.**

**And onto the story…ENJOY!!!**

**Hello Stranger - Chapter 4 –** **A Step in the Blurry Direction…**

"BEEP BEEP BEEP" the alarm clock blared waking the sleeping beauty.

Rachel turned the clock off just like the morning before but this time she didn't mind being woken up because unlike last time she had gotten a great night sleep. Haley had 'moved in', if you can call it that considering she only had two suitcases full of her possessions, last night and Rachel couldn't have been happier. The previous day's encounter with Haley had thoroughly upset her making her think that any chance they had, at whatever it is they were, was shot. But when she opened the door to find a very tired yet adorable as ever Haley standing at her door step it took every fiber of her being not to jump for joy.

Haley had slept on the couch last night, the draw backs to having your bed sold by your husband or ex-husband or whatever the hell he was, _deep breaths, don't think about the bastard._ She bounced out of bed going into her daily morning body stretch. She was about to enter the bedroom when a scent caught her attention.

"Pancakes?"

Curiosity got this cat and she found her attention being diverted from the bathroom to the kitchen. She rounded the corner to the kitchen only to find Haley hovering over the stove. She took in the beautiful sight before her. Haley was wearing a pair of hot pink fuzzy slippers, _she's too cute._ Rachel followed the curve of her legs taking more time than needed to reach the hem of Haley's shorts. A pair of black gym shorts barely covered what Rachel could only describe as the most perfect ass to grace this earth, _baby got back._ She chuckled internally; she didn't need to be caught by her new roommate while ogling all she had to offer. Continuing on her journey up Haley's body Rachel saw what she assumed was part, not enough for her to get the whole image, of a tattoo peeking out from the waistband. She followed the curve of Haley's hips to her slim waist to the outline of her shapely breast loving every inch of skin that the light pink spaghetti strap top allowed. She noticed that Haley's hair was in a messy bun allowing Rachel the perfect view of Haley's slender neck, _what I wouldn't do to taste her gorgeous neck. Her gorgeous neck? She's been living with me for less than twelve hours and I'm already hooked…this can't be good._

"Something smells good," Rachel said hoping that the lust she felt towards the singer was hidden.

"Jesus!" Haley gasped turning to face Rachel while clutching at her chest. "You scared the shit outta me. I didn't hear you coming."

Rachel was temporarily distracted as she caught a glimpse of Haley's breasts rising and falling with each ragged breath she took, _FOCUS!_ "Sorry, I can be sneaky when I want to."

"Dually noted," Haley said pointing the spatula in Rachel's direction before turning back to her work.

"So are those pancakes I smell?" She asked trying to see over Haley's shoulders.

"Maybe," Haley said trying to play coy. "What's it worth to ya?"

Rachel cocked an eyebrow, _is this the same bitchy Haley I met yesterday? _She couldn't help asking herself the question. Yesterday's Haley was bitchy and irritated but today's was cute and playful.

"I don't know. What'll you accept?"

"I was thinking that we could talk over breakfast…ya know get to know each other seeing that we're roommates now," Haley said without taking her attention from the pancakes.

"Sounds fair. Anything I can do?"

"I didn't know what you like to drink with breakfast so I guess you can get that."

"Ok," Rachel said instantly regretting the over eagerness in her voice, _I hope she didn't notice…_

Haley took a quick look over her shoulder with a questioning look on her face, _what got her so happy?_

…_CRAP! She did notice, smooth._ "What do you want?" She asked trying to save any face she had left. This was not a good start; if she couldn't even control her emotions before breakfast she didn't know how she was going to survive a whole day with Haley.

"Chocolate milk?"

"Uhhh…sure," Rachel answered from within the fridge. She knew there was milk in here but she didn't know where the chocolate syrup came…_oh that's right. That time with…stop thinking about her._

Rachel poured the drinks placing them on the counter before the two stools. She took her place watching Haley as she finished putting together their plates. Rachel smiled at Haley when she placed the plate of delicious smelling pancakes in front of her.

"These smell amazing Haley." Rachel swooned over the pancakes taking a big sniff of the mouth watering scent they gave off. Her mouth was literally watering at this point. Not wasting any more time Rachel grabbed at her utensils right before diving in and cutting herself a hefty piece.

"Mmmmm they taste even better than they smell," Rachel mumbled with her mouth still full of the fluffy goodness.

"Thanks," Haley snickered trying to stifle a moan, _if she continues to moan like that I'll…I'll what? Jump her?_

Haley sat down at the counter and a little smile formed on her lips. She finally felt like she had something normal happening in her life. Yes she was sitting in her old apartment and that was a little surreal. But at least she had a place that she could call home. She glanced at Rachel and she smiled again.

"This is nice."

"Yeah," Rachel said with a mouth full of pancakes. She chewed a little longer then swallowed not wanting bits of pancake flying at Haley when they talked.

"I have to admit at first I was worried things would be awkward after our little tiff yesterday," Rachel bashfully admitted.

"I am sorry about that...I am just going through a lot...but being here helps..." Haley sighed. God she couldn't go thirty seconds without having the shitty feeling sneaking up on her. She started eating her pancakes hoping that maybe it would hold back the tidal wave of misery that seemed like it was smashing against her resolve. She took one bite and unfortunately, it didn't really help the way she was feeling. Haley pushed away from the counter and stood up.

"Haley?" Rachel asked not understanding what caused Haley's sudden movements.

"It's....I just need...I am just not in a breakfast mood right now, alright?" Haley snapped. "Is that ok with you?" She asked as she walked over to the pile of her belongings.

"Retract the claws. I was just worried," Rachel snapped back, _this is what I get for once again being nice._ "And people wonder why I'm a bitch," she mumbled to her pancakes. She didn't feel like dealing with Haley if she was going to get all pissy with her. So she went back to enjoying the heaven sent pancakes.

"Nobody had their claws out and did you just call me a bitch?" Haley asked wondering why she was getting so angry. She wasn't mad at Rachel but Rachel was in front of her and for some reason, she was getting flustered. She didn't know why but this flustering felt like more than just getting angry. It was like..._OH MY GOD!!! Fighting with Rachel is a total turn on! How couldn't I be? She so passionate when she's angry, god she is so sexy when she gets all riled up_…

"Claws were out. You jump down my throat because I'm worried if you're okay and you don't think claws were present?" Rachel asked turning her attention back to Haley. If Haley wanted to go toe to toe she was ready for a fight. "And no I didn't just call you a bitch. If I were to call you something I'd call you bipolar."

"You are unbelievable! You know, I don't want to do this..." Haley groaned and grabbed a pair of jeans from her bag. She pulled her jeans over her shorts. She had to get away before she said something to make Rachel throw her out.

_Don't cover them up,_ Rachel inwardly begged as Haley pulled her sweatpants on. She inwardly groaned when Haley's legs were fully covered. _WHY?_

"I have to go..." Haley mumbled headed towards the door.

Rachel shot up from her stool bee lining it to the door. She wasn't about to let Haley walk away from this without talking it out. She stood in between Haley and the door with her legs spread and arms braced to the door frame. "You aren't leaving before we talk," Rachel said sternly needing Haley to know that she meant business.

"There is nothing to talk about...Rachel, can I just go?" Haley knew that she was backed up into the corner. The feeling of frustration and anger that had built up had quickly faded away. All she wanted to do was get out of there before she made another relationship worse.

"Yes there is something to talk about," Rachel said not budging. She needed to talk to Haley and it needed to happen now. "I am not letting you run..." She trailed off as realization hit. "You ran away on the tour because something went wrong, didn't you? That's how you deal with conflict, you run away." Rachel raised a questioning eyebrow in anticipation of Haley's response.

"Are you going to try and deny it or just going to admit I'm right?" Rachel asked with a slight smugness to her voice. She didn't want Haley to feel bad about the choices she made she just wanted her to confront them. Maybe even get some closure about what happened.

Haley folded her arms and felt a tear rolling down her face. She had never told anybody this before. "The reason I left Tree Hill was because I was tired. Tired of not having anything to call my own. I was sick of watching my sister and Nathan make googly eyes at each other. I was tired of feeling like I was a nobody. Then, along comes Keller and he tells me that I am special. That I have something that needs to be shared..." she takes a breath not realizing how much she's been holding in.

"So I tell Nathan that I have a chance to go and share this talent with the world...like the way he shares his talent on the court every night. And instead of supporting me and saying he was proud of me..." The tears started to fall again. The hurt was still there, like it when in the present, not something from her past.

"And he fucking tells me, it's the tour or me? The tour or me? Why couldn't he just give me the same goddamn support that always gave him?"

"Why couldn't he just be proud of me?" Haley put her face in her hands and started sobbing. How long was she supposed to keep feeling this way? Why couldn't she let this guilt go? Nathan gave her a choice that would be impossible for anyone to make. True love or a once in a lifetime opportunity. She felt that same horrible feeling starting to grow stronger again. She tried to speak again but a choked sob was all the came out.

"Haley," Rachel sighed trying to fight back her own tears. Seeing Haley so lost and broken brought so may new emotions to the forefront. Love, hatred, and sadness all pouring through her at the same time. She didn't know what to say. _What should I say? I know what it's like to be given an impossible decision to make but that was different._ Without saying a word, feeling that words would fall short, Rachel walked to Haley wrapping the smaller girl in her arms.

"Shhh, everything will work out," Rachel sighed hoping that she wasn't giving Haley any false hope. She heard Haley let out another gut wrenching sob and held her tighter. The need to comfort Haley was the only thing going through her mind at this point. She wasn't angry about Haley's behavior any longer; she understood why Haley was so on edge. She waited until she felt that Haley was calm enough to walk before she led them over to the couch. She sat down watching Haley take a seat next to her, she couldn't help but notice that Haley had sat closer to her than social norms would allow, considering they had only met yesterday. But she liked it none the less.

"I am sorry..." Haley whispered.

"Don't be," Rachel said in quiet voice.

"I wish I could take it all back..."

"Take what back sweetie?" Rachel said without being able to stop the words. She hoped that Haley didn't notice her little slip.

"The tour...why did I pick the tour...I knew...I knew he would react like that..." Haley said.

"It wasn't right for him to make you choose," Rachel sighed hating to see Haley act like this. "You were given the chance any one would die for. I know I would give anything to live my dream. Be honest with me Hales, do you think Nathan would've chosen differently?"

"I don't know...I know I wouldn't have given him a choice like that. I would never do that..." Haley said as she wiped away her tears.

"And that's what makes you better than him." Rachel placed a reassuring hand on Haley's thigh. "You would let him live his dream and support him. You would have been selfless where he was selfish." Rachel was growing angrier by the second. Nathan had caused Haley some serious harm and she hated him with every fiber of her being. No one should ever have to feel like Haley was feeling. Someone like Haley should be loved and cared for. Not pushed around and ignored.

"You have an amazing talent Haley and it wasn't right for Nathan to ask you to silence it."

"Thanks for saying that..." Haley said. It was good to talk to somebody about this. She looked over at the clock. "Shit…I was going to stop by Karen's before school but it's almost eight..."

"Then I guess that leaves after school," Rachel said liking that Haley wasn't in such a sour mood anymore.

"I have an amazing talent?" Haley asked with a smile as the Rachel's earlier words finally registered. "And what would bring you to that conclusion?" Haley saw the shock clearly written on Rachel's face, _busted!_

_"_Well, if you must know," Rachel sighed hoping to drag this out. "I watched some clips of you online," she mumbled hoping that Haley hadn't heard. She looked over to find Haley grinning devilishly at her, _crap!_

_"_Did you Google me?" Haley asked with a cheeky grin.

_She's not gonna let this one go._ "Fine, I googled you," Rachel let out with an exasperated sigh.

"That's okay. I am glad you did." Haley smiled. She felt a little bit of the rock star swagger start to come back. She had a hot girl looking her up on Google. _Hot girl? _

"Now you really must think I'm a stalker freak," Rachel groaned while burying her head in her hands. _Smooth very smooth Gatina._

_"_I think it's cool. Very not stalker freak. Ok?" Haley playfully smacked her on the arm.

Rachel lifted her head but kept her hands firmly planted to her face. She turned to face Haley while opening her fingers so she could see the blonde. "Really?" She asked all the hope she had filling her voice. She didn't need the only friend she had in Tree Hill running for the hills because of her very slight stalker tactics, _I was just curious._

"Really." Haley grabbed Rachel's wrists and pulled her hands away from the girl's face and smiled. She liked seeing this side of Rachel. It made her seem a little less super model and a little more real girl.

~HS~

Haley walked inside of the cafe and looked around. The place had changed a lot in the last few months. She could tell that Lucas had convinced Karen to let him and Peyton give the café a facelift. It was nicely done but it didn't feel the same as before, it wasn't the same old Karen's Café that she'd known and loved, it now felt like another place that she didn't belong.

She walked around and saw that a few of her clippings and the cover to her single were now on the wall. She ran her fingers across her face on the CD cover. She looked happy on it and all it did was make her even more uncomfortable that was until she heard a familiar voice.

"Well if it isn't Haley James Scott," Karen said the smile evident in her tone. The past four months had been a nightmare. Not only had she lost her best waitress but she also lost her daughter. When she found out Haley had left for the tour without saying goodbye Karen was heartbroken.

"Hey Karen..." Haley felt just as nervous as she did when she went to school. Everyone had been making her feel like shit for leaving and if Karen was going to do the same thing…well, that would pretty much kill her. She stood stone still not sure if she should even hug the woman she thought of as mother.

Karen sensed Haley's nerves and couldn't help but smile at the fact that the tour hadn't changed her at all. She was the same Haley James that had worked her way into her heart. "Well are you just gonna stand there or are you gonna come over here and give me a hug?"

A tear came rolling down her cheek as she wrapped her arms around Karen. As soon as she was in Karen's arms, she knew that Karen wasn't going to make her feel like shit. She should've known that Karen wouldn't have been anything but nice. Other than when she was with Rachel, this was the first time that she felt like she was safe and loved and the longer Karen held her the easier the tears flowed.

"Don't cry sweetie, everything's going to be alright," Karen soothed while rubbing a comforting hand over the teen's back. She knew that it took a lot of courage for Haley to leave home and go on that tour. Despite the nonexistent goodbye she was still proud of Haley for going after her dream. But she knew it took a lot more courage for Haley to come back and that made Karen the proudest. And that's why she was going to do everything in her power to help the young woman out.

"How is it going to be all right?" Haley asked as she broke the hug. "Nobody is talking to me, not even Brooke or Peyton...I feel like...I feel like I lost all of my friends and there is nothing I can do about it..."

"There will be none of that 'woe is me' nonsense coming from your mouth," Karen reprimanded. "You are a strong girl Haley, and there is no way in hell that I will watch you sit on the sidelines. Things will get back to normal you just have to fight for it." She didn't care that she had just sworn, desperate times call for desperate measures.

"Easy to say when you aren't me and if I am so strong then why do I feel so weak?" Haley walked away from Karen staring out the window and watched the cars go by. God, how could she ever get her life back? Truthfully, did she even want it back? _Is it worth fighting for?_

"You are not weak Haley James Scott," Karen said sternly. She didn't know what was worse, Haley feeling so defeated or Lucas' behavior towards her. It pained her to see them fighting, they were her children and they should be getting along making up for the lost four months not fighting over it. But watching such a young girl who barely had the chance to experience life give up was killing her. "You are strong. You have done nothing in your life that would make me think otherwise."

"It's just James now. Nathan made it clear that I don't deserve his name anymore..." Haley still couldn't turn around. Just hearing 'Haley James Scott' felt like a knife to her heart, it was the reminder of what life could've been rearing its ugly head once again. "And I don't even feel like I deserve Haley James either. I don't know who I am. It's like I had this picture of who I was," she walked over to the wall and grabbed the cover of her single and looked at it. "Now I don't even recognize the girl in this picture. Is that what a strong person feels, Karen? Lost in their own skin?"

Karen let out a shaky sigh, seeing Haley so defeated was touching new nerves that she didn't even know existed. "You may not recognize the girl in the picture but I do. She's the same girl that's standing before me." She noticed the skeptical look Haley gave her but continued on. "It may not seem like it now but you are the same. The girl in the picture has the confidence that the girl standing before me has misplaced."

"It's that confidence that made me end up here, alone..." Haley started her voice cracking slightly.

"No, it's that confidence that made you follow your dreams. It was your love and strength that brought you back here to fight for what you love. And you're not alone, you have me and I will always be here for you no matter what," Karen said with a smile as she wrapped her arm around Haley's shoulders. "Because of that strength you will get your life back and you won't feel alone."

_Alone, am I really alone?_ And just like that Rachel popped into her head. She wasn't alone she had Rachel and suddenly she felt a little less horrible. She didn't understand it but it made her feel better just to know that for a mere moment she had Rachel. She took a deep breath and exhaled. She didn't want to admit it but Rachel was the only thing that made Tree Hill a little less terrible. "So…Karen, there is one thing I could use your help with...I know you probably have a waitress but I was…"

"You're hired," Karen said with a smile. She had a feeling that when Haley returned she would make her way over here asking for a job and she wouldn't have it any other way. She had thought about hiring another waitress but doing so would've just made Haley's absence more permanent.

The door jingled and Haley turned to see who it was. And there was her best friend, Lucas Scott.

She froze in her place and she didn't know what she should do. Lucas was just standing there not saying a word. He just kept looking at Haley like she wasn't really there.

Haley blinked her eyes trying to fight back the tears that were stinging behind them. And with one blink he turned around and left.

Haley couldn't believe it. He didn't even say anything. Lucas Eugene Scott. Her best friend in the entire world. The only person she could ever really count on and he couldn't even say one fucking word to her.

Not.

One.

Fucking.

Word.

And the fragile little piece of happiness that Karen and her thoughts of Rachel had built up in the last few minutes had been completely destroyed by one look from Lucas Scott. She couldn't take it anymore. She was right back to the same place she was in that hotel room. She had to go, she had to go and completely numb herself from this, from everything. She walked out of the door to the cafe and headed for the apartment.

And her pills.

"Haley!" Karen called but it was no use she was already out the door. Karen sat back down at the counter and looked at the picture of Haley once again. Something had changed. And even though she wanted more than anything to save Haley from whatever it was she was going through, she knew that she wouldn't be able to. Haley had to find her own way back. She looked at the picture one more time and a tear came rolling down her cheek.

"Damn it..." She tore the picture in half and threw in the trash.

~HS~

"What a fucking day," Rachel sighed. She was painstakingly trying to get up the stairs leading to the apartment but every muscle in her body was aching in pain. She had just come from her first cheer practice with 'Cheer Nazi' and couldn't help but think that Brooke had been extra hard on the squad just to get to her. _I don't get why she's so fucking angry at me. So what if I'm friends with Haley...it's not like she's making an effort._

Rachel was beaming when she reached the door she had just conquered her Everest. Rifling through her purse she found her key sliding it into the door. She wanted to collapse the moment the door opened but something felt off. No lights were on but Haley was supposed to be home, it didn't add up. She took another step into the apartment dropping her bag by her side while taking a look around the darkened room; _it's useless to look for something in the dark genius._ She flicked the light on and squinted as she allowed her eyes to get used to the florescent light.

She crooked her head to the side when she noticed Haley curled up on the couch. "Hales? You alright?" She took steps towards the couch trying to hide the pain coursing through her body with each step. She knew that her pain was nothing compared to Haley's. They had only been living together for less than a day and Rachel already knew that Haley was a broken soul.

Seeing Haley so broken pulled at her heartstrings. Seeing those clips of Haley had opened her eyes to a glimpse of the girl that Haley used to be and she would give the world to see that Haley again...and continue with what was there

"Haley?" Rachel asked again when she noticed that Haley hadn't responded. After what seemed to be an eternity she finally made it over to the couch. She looked upon Haley who was cuddling up to the arm rest.

"Mmmmm Rachel...how's it goin...?" Haley knew she was saying something, but she didn't know what she was saying. Just like she knew Rachel was there. Her mind was a little mushier than usual and the voice that usually told her what to do when she was like this wasn't saying anything. "C'mere…pleazze," she said motioning for the redhead to sit down with her.

"Hales, what's wrong? You sound…off," Rachel asked the concern evident. She placed a tentative hand on Haley's back hoping that she wasn't crossing a line. She had never seen Haley so out of it like this and it scared her. She had a feeling that Haley got depressed at times but she never thought that it would amount to something like this. Rachel needed something that assured her that Haley was still here and this simple touch was doing the trick.

Haley felt Rachel's hand on her back and smiled her usual lazy smile. "I like the way...you're hand feels...makes everything...ummm...what's the ummm...I like you touching..." Haley knew that didn't make any sense but she was amazed that she got it out. Hopefully Rachel could understand.

_Something is definitely up_. She had only seen people act like this when they were high, _could she be high?_ Rachel really looked at Haley, _nah, she just must be tired._ "Hales, sweetie, you're not making any sense." She tried her best to sound comforting but the concern just wouldn't leave her voice.

Haley groaned. She sat up and pulled Rachel down into the spot where she was just lying. Once she was sitting down, Haley flopped into Rachel's lap resting her head against Rachel's shoulder. Haley could hear her heartbeat increase making her lazy smile reappear. She guided Rachel's hand to her back while grabbing the other one and pulling it towards her. She needed to feel the comfort that only Rachel could bring her.

"Thas better...you make everything better…" Haley mumbled sounding a little more honest than she would if she wasn't so groggy. She nuzzled her head into the crook of Rachel's neck.

"Mmmmm" she murmured.

Rachel wrapped her arms around Haley as she felt her snuggle in closer. She knew that there was something up with Haley but right now it didn't matter. All that mattered was that Haley needed comfort and she was damn well gonna be the one to give it to her.

Haley couldn't believe how good Rachel smelled. Even when she was this high she could still smell how good Rachel smelled. Then the voice that had been silent this whole time suddenly piped in a thought, _taste her...she won't stop you_. Haley grinned and answered the voice aloud. "Ok..."

Haley gently pressed her lips onto Rachel's cheek. She didn't linger because she didn't really know what she was doing. As soon as her lips left Rachel's cheek the voice told her that maybe shouldn't have done it and she needed to say something to cover up her actions. "Ssorry..." she mumbled as she nuzzled back into Rachel's neck. She could hear the voice in her head groaning, _nice move_.

Rachel had heard Haley say 'ok' and was going to ask her about it but all thoughts of questioning Haley went blank when she felt Haley's lips on her cheek, _she has THE softest lips EVER!_ "It's...alright," she sighed slightly short of breath.

Haley pulled her face out of Rachel's neck and smiled at her. She gently pressed her lips against Rachel's. It wasn't anything more than a whisper of a kiss but something had told her to try it. Like her body just knew that her brain, despite its blurriness, wanted to know if her lips tasted and felt as good as her cheek. And it felt better actually. She pulled back and smiled as she felt the mush returning.

"Just wondering..." Haley said as she put her face back into the crook of Rachel's neck.

_Just wondering what? Would I push her off me if she kissed me? Would I tell her she was gross?_ She looked down at Haley and saw the goofy grin gracing her face. _Just wondering if she liked it? _Rachel went with that one because that one was the one she liked the most. That one gave her hope that one day she and Haley could be together. That one gave her hope that one day she would be given the chance to make Haley happy, just like she deserved to be.

Rachel looked down when she felt Haley's breath on her neck. And sure enough Haley was fast asleep in Rachel's arms, _and I wouldn't have it any other way._

She hoisted herself and Haley from the couch making sure to not drop the gorgeous being in her arms and made her way towards the bedroom. She didn't feel comfortable leaving Haley alone when she was so clearly distraught over something, she just wished she knew what exactly that something was, _I guess I'll leave that one for tomorrow._

Pulling back the covers Rachel gently placed Haley in her bed before pulling back and looking at her. For the first time since they had met Haley looked truly at peace, there was no frown, now worry, and no regret on her beautiful face. There was just a goofy grin. _All I have to do is figure out how to make it last._

**And there you have it chapter 4 is complete!**

**I hope you all enjoyed the Raley interactions and the Karen/Haley talk. **

**The next chapter will have guest appearances by the other cast members.**

**Please review we adore them!!!**

**=D**


	5. Sometimes the truth you need hurts…

**A/N: Hey everybody its Crashspike. Sorry for the long wait but sometimes real life gets in the way. But hopefully the wait between this and chapter six won't be so long. Anyway, I hope you all like it, see you at the bottom, lol.**

**Hello Stranger – Chapter 5 - Sometimes the truth you need hurts…**

"_Mmmmm" Haley moaned when she felt the pair of lips one her neck sucked playfully at her pulse point. It felt like absolute heaven. _

"_You taste so good baby," the person mumbled before reattaching their lips to Haley's neck nibbling slightly._

"_Rachel…"_

Haley shot out of bed in a cold sweat, _what the hell kinda dream was that?_ She had absolutely no idea where such a dream could have sprouted from. Sure she had been thinking more than friendly thoughts about her new roommate but she just assumed that was some form of sex withdrawal. But this dream took things to a new level, a sex dream about you're female roommate was one that brought things to a new level especially if you were Haley James. _Why the hell would I start thinking about Rachel in that way?_ _Did I drink…the pills...?_

"Why do they have to have this fucking after affect?" Haley mumbled to herself. She remembered coming back to the apartment hoping that maybe Rachel was there. She also remembered feeling disappointed that Rachel wasn't there and she did the only thing that seemed to make her feel better. She took a couple of pills and as usual they knocked her out. And Haley was pretty sure that when she passed out she was lying on the couch.

_Where the hell am I?_ She started looking around trying to gather her surroundings. Now she was in a bed. A bed that smelled a lot like her new roommate's perfume. Haley took a deep breath in and let the scent fill her nose. As she exhaled, Haley stretched enjoying the way the silky sheets felt underneath her. After sleeping on the floor face down one night and on the couch the next, her body was very grateful to be lying on an actual bed for once. Her mind wasn't the pile of mush that it usually was when she woke up from taking the Vicodin and that was different. It was starting feel like her body was building up a tolerance for her drug of choice and that was a little scary. She quickly dismissed the thought and her mind went right back to that dream she was having before she woke up. It was so real. She had never felt anything like it. There was no denying that Rachel was gorgeous but she had never thought of a girl like that. It didn't make her feel uncomfortable or anything she just didn't know where this was coming from. Haley ran her fingers through her tangled mess of hair and sighed.

"Good morning" Rachel purred from the door.

"Morning…" Haley blushed. She felt a little embarrassed by the presence of her roommate.

"So, last night was interesting…" Rachel said trying to see if Haley even remembered what had happened.

"WHAT?!?" Haley shrieked, _this can't be happening! There is NO WAY that I slept with Rachel last night. I would never do that…would I?_

_It's not that horrible is it?_ Rachel couldn't help but let the disappointment cross her face. All her doubts and insecurities came rushing to the forefront. _I'm really that horrible to be with? Is it really that frightening of a thought to be with me?_ The panic was setting in. _Will I ever be good enough?_ All her resolve about being nice towards Haley washed away with that one look of horror.

"It was a joke," Rachel snapped reverting right back to her bitchy ways.

"I was just a little confused about what happened…I didn't mean to…" Haley stammered.

"Sure…"

"I just was wondering how I got in your bed and umm…"

"Oh my god! You were so out of it last night after coming back from the café. I didn't feel right leaving you on the couch." And just like that Rachel stormed back out of the bedroom leaving a very confused Haley.

"What just happened?" Haley said as she fell back onto the bed.

~HS~

Karen wiped the counter and took another look at the clock above the door. It was almost 8 and there was still no sign of Haley. She thought about calling her but she knew that Haley was going through something and she might not be in as early as she used to be. She sighed and continued wiping down the countertops. Suddenly she heard the door and instead of Haley, she saw a tall redheaded girl.

"We aren't open just yet..." Karen said but she could tell from the sad expression the young girl's face that maybe she could bend the rules this time.

"Oh ok...sorry," Rachel sighed as she started to turn around and head back out of the door. _GREAT! Know where am I supposed to go?_

"Come on and sit down. Looks like you could use a place to hide out for a bit..." Karen smiled motioning her to come back inside of the Café.

"Thanks," Rachel smiled meekly not fully understanding why the older woman was being so nice. From what Haley had revealed Karen was a welcoming and nice person but she didn't expect the generosity to extend to strangers. She hesitantly took a seat at the counter not knowing what else to do.

"So can I get you something?" Karen saw the English textbook poking out of the top of the girl's purse. "Playing hooky this morning?"

"Not ready to face the day yet," Rachel sighed. Haley's look was still fresh in her memory. "Could I have a coffee?"

"Sure." Karen slid a mug in front of her and poured the coffee. "I know that this may seem odd but if you need someone to listen...I don't mind hearing what's on your mind..." She could tell something had knocked this girl out of her box and she felt this strange need to help her.

"Thanks but I don't want to burden you with my problems, Haley's should be enough to keep your hands full," Rachel sighed as she inhaled the sweet aroma of the coffee.

"You know, Haley?" Karen asked wondering how the new girl knew Haley.

"Yeah, we're sorta roommates now. I moved into the apartment she and Nathan used to own." Rachel said as she took a sip.

"So, you and Haley...well I guess I should say hi. My name's Karen."

"Yeah, me and Haley," Rachel sighed not realizing how much pain that statement brought. She had thought that after Haley's little escapade last night that there was a chance for her and Haley but this morning proved that she was so wrong. She noticed the confused face Karen gave her and decided to changes topics. "I'm Rachel by the way."

Karen walked from around the counter and sat on the stool next to Rachel's. "Is everything ok with Haley? She was supposed to stop by before school?"

Rachel started to panic. She knew that something was up with Haley last night; she wanted to tell Karen that she suspected something but that would be crossing a line. "I don't know. I left before she got up." _Lie._

"Right..." Karen was still pretty good at reading teenagers and she could tell that something had happened. And she didn't want to push Rachel on it but maybe she could get her to open up. And maybe she could find out how Haley was doing.

"So when did you move here?"

"A couple days ago."

"And do you like it here so far?" Karen asked hoping to get a little more out of the girl.

"Eh," Rachel replied thinking about Karen's question. Tree Hill wasn't a bad place but it wasn't what she was used to. The small town feel wasn't really for her; she was more of the big city type. But it was a change of scenery and that's exactly what the doctor ordered. "It's the change I needed." She knew that her answers were short and vague but she wasn't sure how much she wanted to divulge.

Karen smiled. "Change is good, if it is done for the right reasons."

"Then I guess 'good' is in the eye of the beholder," Rachel replied getting defensive. She didn't like the thought that Karen could read her. She liked having this mysterious facade and she wasn't about to let Karen be the one to break through it, not with this much at stake.

"So then what have you been beholding this morning? You seem a little upset..." Karen said.

Rachel let out a sigh, _am I really going to tell her that I have a crush on Haley?_ She couldn't help but feel that Karen suspected that something was up but she wasn't about to confirm anything. "Have you ever been given a look that just seems to cut right through you?" _Ok, so maybe I can give a little bit away._

"In this town, every single day." Karen laughed trying to lighten Rachel's mood. "But I guess you mean it in a different way than I do..."

"You're guessing right," Rachel chuckled slightly. She was starting to understand why Haley admired Karen so much. She was easy to talk to and knew exactly when to push and when to pull back.

"Why did it bother you so much?" Karen asked. She was still hovering around the issue. Maybe if she could just get Rachel to speak up, she might be to get the girl to open up. But Rachel's walls were well built and maybe she needed a little push. "I am sure you have gotten 'looks' before. Maybe he or she was jealous of you."

"Ha," Rachel laughed bitterly, _she definitely wasn't jealous...more like appalled._ "Jealousy definitely wasn't on her mind."

Karen's eyebrow rose slightly at hearing 'her'. Was Rachel talking about Haley? She paused for a moment. The way she said me and Haley. "I'm sorry, but are you talking about...who I think we are talking about..." Karen asked not wanting to embarrass the girl.

"Maybe," Rachel replied coyly. Karen hadn't outright said that she thought she was talking about Haley. "But I doubt that we're talking about the same person." She looked at her cell phone noticing that she was really late for school, _Brooke is gonna flip shit._ "But I have to get going to school." And without a goodbye Rachel rushed out of the cafe.

~HS~

For the majority of the day, Haley's mind had been trying to process four completely different problems but each was equally as troubling. She had resorted to barricading herself in her favorite corner of the library just so she could try to sort this out. The first thing was of course Nathan. But she had gone over that so many time that at this point she welcomed the chance to think about something else. The next thought was about her best friend.

"Lucas…"

Just the thought of her best friend was almost as bad as when she thought about Nathan. She never realized how important Lucas Scott was to her until yesterday in the café. No matter how bad things got, Lucas would always talk to her. Even if it was just to bitch at her, he would always communicate with her. But he acted like she wasn't even there. Actually he had given her the look that he usually used when someone would mention Dan. So did that mean that Lucas held her in the same place that he reserved for Dan Scott?

"Fuck that…"

The last two were completely intertwined. Waking up in Rachel's bed and the sex dream she had about Rachel. She had gone over the dream in every way possible and she kept coming back to the thought that she had slept with Rachel. But that conclusion still didn't feel right. Despite how fucked up she got on vicodin she had never been so loose as to sleep with someone. But that dream felt so real almost memory like.

"Ahhhh," Haley slammed her head against the table not caring that she had probably disturbed everyone in the vicinity. This Rachel thing was really starting to get to her. First she's noticing her beauty then how she gets turned on when they fight and now she's having naughty dreams about her. Something was definitely up but for once in her life she didn't know how to go about this, _what's the use of being Tutor Girl if I can't even figure out my own problems._

She was sure that a girl like Rachel was straight as an arrow, _look at her for crying out loud! With a body like that she could get any guy she wants…there I go again thinking about her gorgeous sexy…STOP!_

"Why?" Haley groaned into the wood.

And she was pretty damn sure that she was straight but her thoughts would make someone believe otherwise. That dream would make you think otherwise. She was enjoying herself in the dream, hell dream Haley was enjoying herself more than real Haley ever had with Nathan.

_But why is that? Why was dream Haley having a better time than I ever did? Maybe I'm just horny…yeah that's it. I'm just horny as hell and she's the nearest…sexiest thing? _Haley had to scratch her head at that one. Reasonable knowledge would have told her that she would be having continuous sex dreams about Nathan not Rachel.

"My head hurts."

~HS~

Brooke rolled her eyes as Rachel strolled into the afternoon practice. She couldn't understand how she let Peyton talk her into letting this bimbo on the team. Were they really that desperate for talent this year? Peyton had calmed her down about Rachel missing the morning practice but now she was late for the afternoon session. And she wasn't going to let this slide.

"You're late," Brooke barked.

"Whatev," Rachel replied nonchalantly. She was in no mood to deal with Cheer-Nazi especially after all the emotional issues she was dealing with, _how the hell did I reduce myself to being shaken by one look?_

"You do realize that I am this close..." Brooke said as she walked past Peyton.

"Get over it..." Peyton sighed as she followed Brooke to where Rachel and the rest of the team were standing. She knew that Brooke was probably still pissed about the parking lot incident from yesterday.

Brooke didn't even bother acknowledging Peyton. She was too focused on the nerve of Rachel. From the first day she saw her, she didn't like her. She was the new fish in this pond and there was no way she going to let her think she ran this place. This was her world and she ran it. The closer she got to Rachel the more infuriated she got. Nobody was going to treat her like a punk.

"I don't know what back water town you came from but, in this world when I say practice is right after school, I mean right after school." Brooke said as she stood right in front of Rachel not giving the girl any space at all.

"I'm sorry did I upset the queen bee?" Rachel asked not caring that she was asking for trouble. If anything this little tiff with Brooke was a great distraction from Haley. "And who are you to be asking me about 'back water' towns. Have you taken a look around this place? Do you guys even have indoor plumbing?" Rachel said knowing exactly what buttons to push.

"So how about we have practice?" Peyton asked trying to diffuse the tension that was building between the girls.

"Practice sounds good to me." Bevin chimed in but Brooke was already in full bitch mode and there was no stopping her now.

"Who am I? I'm Brooke Davis and this town doesn't need a redheaded bitch like you coming in and thinking she is better than everyone else!" Brooke shouted.

"Brooke..." Peyton tried to pull Brooke back but she knew that there was no stopping Brooke once she got started.

"You should listen to your friend," Rachel said with a nod of her head in Peyton's direction. "And let me just point out one thing for you Brooke Davis. I am not the one acting all high and mighty around this place. You should take a look in the mirror one of these days because you're looking a lot like trash to me."

"Unbelievable! Who the hell are you, again? You think that just because you let the Tree Hill charity case move in with you, that all of a sudden you are better than me?" Brooke growled.

"Tree Hill charity case!" Rachel screamed not caring that the world could probably hear her. "You are un-fucking believable! That charity case as you like to call her was your friend! Your fucking friend! And you abandon her in her time of need!" Rachel was fuming at this point; she wouldn't be surprised if smoke was coming from her ears. "You think you're better than her just because she made one fucking mistake. News flash, she came back. She realized what she did was a mistake and now she's trying to fix it. And all you fucking people can do is turn your back on her when she is trying! I'm pretty damn sure that all of you have made mistakes in the past. And I'm willing to bet that Haley has forgiven you, not turn her back like some stuck up prick!"

"You have no idea, the mess that Haley left behind when she bailed. Nathan was a fucking mess and so was Lucas. She didn't even care! Now she thinks that she can come back and we are supposed to forgive her because it's Haley James?" Brooke could still feel Peyton pulling her arm trying to restrain her. But she wasn't mad at Rachel, she was mad at Haley and since Haley wasn't there she had to take it out on somebody.

"Brooke, this isn't the place for this..." Peyton said as she stepped in front of her best friend. She knew that Haley leaving had hurt Brooke. Probably more than she wanted to admit. But Rachel hadn't done anything more than take care of Haley since she had came back.

"Move Peyton." Brooke said still not taking her eyes off of the redhead.

"Yeah, move Peyton. I want Brooke to be able to hear me loud a clear," Rachel ordered. The anticipation of seeing Brooke's world turned upside down was killing her. She watched as Peyton stepped aside slightly but not completely removing herself from in front of Brooke.

"You wanna know what your precious Nathan did?" Rachel asked mockingly. She could see that each word was hitting its target. Brooke looked like she was three seconds from crying. She wanted this to hurt and hurt bad.

"You wanna know what he told her when she told him about the tour? 'It's me or the tour'. Me or the fucking tour. He asked her to choose between her husband and her dream. Do you think Haley would ever make him chose?" Rachel asked knowing that she was just about to hit the last nail in this coffin. She looked at Peyton and the blonde looked shocked, apparently, she had no idea that this had happened.

"That's fucking bullshit! Nathan wouldn't do that! Haley fucking left! She left! And that's it!" Brooke yelled with a tear rolling down her cheek. She hadn't even noticed that the entire gym had frozen and was staring. Could Rachel be right? She just moved here so why would she lie for Haley? No, Nathan wouldn't do that.

"You say one more word about Nathan or that fucking liar Haley, I swear to god, I will fucking break you in..."

"Ok that's it. Practice is cancelled." Peyton said as she stepped back in between the girls. Hearing Rachel's story about what happened between Nate and Haley was completely different than what she had heard. She looked around the gym and everyone failed to notice the timid blonde standing in the corner while this entire throw down happened. Haley was just standing there looking like she was on the verge of falling apart. Peyton felt a pang of regret once she saw the look on Haley's face. _Maybe I have been on the wrong side._

"Is someone finally starting to realize that Nathan Scott the God isn't so godly?" Rachel asked in a baby voice knowing that she was getting on Brooke's last nerve.

Brooke growled and tried to push her way towards Rachel once again but Peyton blocked her friend.

"Enough, Brooke let's just go, ok?" Peyton said hoping to get these two to back off. Her eyes cut over to Haley and then she looked at Rachel again.

"Go take care of her." She said as she pushed Brooke towards the locker room.

Rachel looked questioningly at Peyton before looking in the direction she pointed to. And there she was Haley James in the flesh; _I wonder how long she's been standing there? I hope she didn't hear everything._ She mustered up all the strength she had and slowly made her way over to where Haley was. It was funny, she had the easiest time finding strength when she was about to fight Brooke but when she was simply going to talk to Haley she felt like the runt of the litter.

"Hi..." Haley said. She had come into the gym and caught Brooke's line about her being a 'fucking liar'. The words stung but seeing Rachel stand up her made them hurt a little less.

"Hey," Rachel spoke just above a whisper. She didn't know what Haley had heard and she wasn't sure if Haley was going to yell at her for telling them what Nathan had said. She stood there shifting nervously on her feet waiting for whatever Haley had to say.

"So what happened this morning? I was just a little out of it and...umm..."

"Nothing, just drop it," Rachel snapped over her shoulder. She wasn't about to stop and have this conversation with Haley. Hell she wasn't even sure if she wanted to have this conversation with her. She continued to storm off towards her car hoping to lose Haley. She needed time to think about her emotions and what the hell she was going to do with them. The look Haley gave her this morning had cut deeper than any knife could.

"STOP!" Haley shouted a little louder than she had intended. She had enough of people not talking to her this week. And the last thing she wanted was for this girl to be mad at her too.

Rachel faltered slightly at Haley's outburst but recovered quickly as she quickened her pace towards her Denali. She kept walking until she got to the truck. She could hear Haley's footsteps coming towards her and see her reflection in the window. Rachel sighed pretending to be looking for her keys. Just to give Haley a chance to catch up with her.

Haley ran. Something inside of her snapped. She couldn't take another person leaving her. As she got closer, Haley felt her stomach tighten. How could she be losing someone she just met? Rachel was the only friend she had in Tree Hill. The only one that didn't think she was the devil. By the time she got to the Denali, Rachel was already inside. Haley frantically knocked on the driver's side window. Rachel slowly rolled the window down and Haley had to pause and catch her breath. Once she did, the words came out before she even had chance to think of what to say.

"Just tell me...please...just tell me what I did..." Haley pulled on the truck's handle and opened the door. She grabbed Rachel's hand and held it between her hands. Rachel wasn't making any eye contact still but Haley held her tighter trying to make her turn around but she still wouldn't look at her. She closed her eyes and whispered exactly what she thought was happening.

"I can't lose you, Rachel…" She was a little surprised by her words but she couldn't hide herself from Rachel. Mostly because she knew her roommate would see through it. And it made her feel a little better even though she was holding onto Rachel's hand for dear life.

Rachel let out a deep sigh, _she's making this difficult._ She leaned forwards resting her head against the steering wheel. She wanted to pull Haley into her arms like she did the night before. That was then and this was now. And right now she wanted to tell Haley the truth.

"You're not going to lose me." She picked her head up from the steering wheel making eye contact with the blonde. "I just need some time to sort some stuff out…" She hoped beyond all hope that Haley could see the truth in her eyes. There was no way in hell that she was going to let Haley go. She needed the quirky blonde in her life; she just needed to figure out her emotions before she could figure out their relationship.

"And in order for me to do that you have to let go of my hand," Rachel said with a slight smile. The butterflies in her stomach went into overdrive the second their hands connected but she couldn't let that show especially after Haley's reaction this morning. She looked at the singer and knew that would be enough for Haley.

Haley held on a little longer, wanting to be sure that Rachel wasn't going to change her mind. She looked into Rachel's eyes and she got a flash of a memory. There was something about the way she was looking at her. Something was nagging at the back of her mind. It wasn't from her dream either. The dream was pretty intense and this didn't feel the same as that. She kept staring at the redhead.

"What is it?" Rachel whispered.

It was like she was looking through a thick fog but she could hear something. She remembered feeling lips against hers. And then she tried to focus on the words she was hearing. Once she figured out what she was hearing Haley spoke the words that were echoing in the background of her mind.

"Just wondering..."

Rachel's eyebrows shot up and her mental alarm started blaring. _Does she remember?_

"Did something...umm...Did something happen last night?" Haley asked. She could swear that something had happened but she just couldn't focus.

Rachel tried to stop her eyes from bugging out of her head but the thought that Haley could remember what happened last night frightened her. _She freaked out about a stupid joke, what the hell is she gonna do if she remembers that she kissed me?_

"Nothing happened, Hales…" Rachel assured hoping that there was enough conviction in her voice.

Haley listened to the words that came out of Rachel's mouth. Why would she lie to her? But there was still this nagging feeling that something had happened. She just nodded her head and dismissed her worries. Maybe her dream had started to blend into her real life.

"I guess I could let your hand go." She whispered as she continued looking at Rachel's eyes.

"Thanks," Rachel smiled politely when Haley finally released her hand. She finally felt like she could breathe. The overwhelming feeling that she got last night from Haley's lips had just come from a simple hand touch, _this can't be good._ "I'll be home in an hour."

Haley felt her heart drop into her stomach. She didn't want to stop holding Rachel's hand and she really didn't want to be left here at school with the 'I hate Haley' squad still lurking around the campus. She looked at her roommate and her face was one of worry and she hoped that girl who could always read her so well could read her right now.

"Can I go with you?" she asked sheepishly. Haley felt the butterflies firing up in her stomach and she didn't know if it was because of the dream or the fact that she was scared that Rachel might say no.

_Why? Why does she have to give me that look? Why can't I resist it?_ "Hop in," Rachel said with a smile. "I'm dropping you off then I'm going back out, ok?"

"OK…Thanks roomie," Haley felt a wave of relief wash over her.

~HS~

_Why must she be a master of looks?_ Rachel pondered as she exited the apartment parking lot. She had just dropped off Haley and like she promised she had left needing the alone time to sort out her thoughts. But she was left with another look to think about, the disappointed, no, the scared face that Haley had given her as she ascended the stairs. It was a look that told her Haley was afraid of losing her making her feel whole yet confused at the same time.

Wasn't it the same Haley that had just this morning given her a look of disgust at the thought of being with her?

Wasn't this the same Haley that was desperately in love with her husband?

Wasn't she the same Haley that had kissed her the night before?

Everything was running through Rachel's mind and she needed to slow things down. She needed to find control but she didn't know where to look, she needed to find peace. Every place she looked just didn't seem right. The docks looked nice but there were way too many people to get the quiet that she needed. Karen's Café was a definite no-no after the incident this morning, _I have to watch myself around her._

She continued to drive aimlessly around the small town wondering if it would actually be possible to get lost here. Every road seemed to lead her back to the main street. It was like some eerie Twilight Zone episode that she had just stumbled into.

Finally she found herself parked in front of what she could only describe as a river court, _didn't Haley mention a river court?_

She hoped out of her Denali and made her way towards the warn bleachers. The place was quiet and peaceful, definitely off the beaten path compared to the other sites Tree Hill had to offer. It was a place that the locals only seemed to know about, _I guess that would only make sense._

She looked out onto the water watching as the slow ripples flowed. She found herself getting lost in a trance that the river put on her. It was like the river held some magic, magic that allowed her to calmly think about everything that has happened to her. She sat silently looking out at the peaceful river. She didn't know what to think of everything that was going on. Haley had made her feel like absolute shit earlier but she still stood up for her against Brooke and her tirade. And here she was sitting here doing the same thing she had been doing on and off all day; wishing that she could understand why Haley had this power over her? She heard a car pull up along the gravel and couldn't help but cringe when she saw that driver of the car was Peyton, _this is gonna be fabulous._

Peyton sat in the car for a second trying to judge the look on the Rachel's face. After the fight in the gym, she just wanted to check on the girl. But now that she was here, she felt like maybe she made the wrong choice. But Peyton Sawyer wasn't going to let a little thing like doubt get in her way. She turned her car off and got out. Rachel still looked ready to fight but Peyton smiled at her and held up two fingers.

"I come in peace." Peyton said hoping that a little joke would ease the tension of the situation but the look on Rachel's face didn't soften at all. This was going to be a little tougher than she thought.

"Yeah right," Rachel scoffed. "How do I know that you're not the Trojan horse? Brooke is probably about to come flying out of your trunk with her guns blazing."

"Because Brooke Davis would never ride in the trunk of a car, too dirty and too low profile back there." Peyton continued smiling hoping that maybe she could get her to relax a little bit. And seeing that it wasn't helping she tried a bit of honesty.

"And secondly, Brooke doesn't even know I'm here."

"I see. The knight disowns the queen," Rachel said with a smirk. She still didn't believe that Peyton could come in peace, it was too easy. She needed to keep up her bitchy exterior up especially around Peyton. She had already slipped up when she talked to Karen earlier and she didn't need Peyton running to Brooke with any information.

"Look, I'm not into any high school royalty crap...life is too short for all of this he said/she said bullshit." Peyton said as she wandered over to the nearby picnic bench. Ever since joining the squad it people would think the worst possible things about her, like she was a stuck-up bitch that followed Brooke's every single command. Not that she cared but it was tiring and a bit annoying. So when she did try and be honest, she always had to climb over the wall of being Brooke's best friend.

"I don't think you are as bad as Brooke has been saying..." Peyton sighed and sat on the bench. She could see that Rachel was still standing there waiting for the other shoe to drop so, she motioned for Rachel to come and sit with her.

"And what makes you think that? We've never even talked," Rachel questioned curiously. This was odd.

"The way you stood up for Haley." Peyton said. "I guess you two have been hanging out or something..."

"Ya think?" Rachel asked her tone full with sarcasm. "It's not like she's living with me or anything."

Peyton raised an eyebrow. "So she is living with you?"

"Yeah...I thought everyone knew," Rachel was beyond confused. _Isn't that why Brooke's mad at me? For taking Haley in?_

"Well, Brooke has been telling everyone that Haley has been staying in a box behind the Café..." Peyton smirked. "So nobody knows anything. Haley coming back is all that people care about...but, me, I just want to know the truth." Peyton paused and took a deep breath, _it's now or never Sawyer_. "Did Nathan really say that to her?"

"Do you think I would lie about something like that?" Rachel asked. Maybe she would be able to find out just how low people thought she was.

"So, that's a yes." Peyton couldn't even begin to process what Haley had been going through. She hadn't said anything good or bad about her leaving but now she could understand why she did what she did.

"You know, he has always been like that..."

"Well it's not right," Rachel huffed. "I have never seen someone so broken in my life...and I thought I had it bad," she mumbled the last part not wanting Peyton to hear.

Peyton hesitated once again. But she still needed to ask the question that she came here to ask. She didn't know why she was so scared. But after the way Rachel went after Brooke she knew she had to choose her words carefully.

"Is Haley ok?"

"Define ok?" Rachel asked carefully. She wasn't even sure if she knew the answer.

"I mean, how is she doing?"

"I guess you could say she's holding it together," Rachel sighed not knowing if anything she was saying was true. The state Haley was in the previous night was definitely not ok, it was far from it. "I can tell it's hard on her...not having Nathan but I think it hurts the most that she doesn't have her friend." Her heart clenched at the thought, _what if Haley leaves me for them?_

Peyton just nodded. She knew that if she really wanted to know how Haley was doing she could just go and ask Haley. But something inside of her was still holding her back.

"I don't know what to say..."

"You should figure it out soon. Everyone needs friends and from what Haley tells me your group was tight. She says that you guys were her family," Rachel smiled sadly at the thought. She knew what it was like to lose her family, to have them abandon you because of choices.

"We still are..." Peyton whispered wanting to believe what she said. She needed to think that she was still Haley's family, to know that she wasn't being a hypocrite by abandoning her.

"That's bull and you know it!" Rachel yelled cutting her off. "Family doesn't treat you like you're treating Haley."

"Yeah, well family doesn't bail and that's what she did." Peyton said calmly not wanting to get into a shouting match. "Everyone is just still hurt and confused...I know that isn't a reason but it's the only one I have."

"One, Haley bailed because she had no other choice. You think she wanted to choose between her husband and her dream?" Rachel's anger was growing and she couldn't control it.

"Two, she came back. She gave up her dream so she could make things right. And three, she's hurt too. You think it's easy for her to be ignored by the only family she has in Tree Hill?" By the end of her inquisition Rachel was screaming. _This is bull shit!_

"You have absolutely no right to treat her like shit. She's human, humans make mistakes. At least she's trying to fix it. I don't see any of you trying to make things better."

Peyton let the words sink in. She really hadn't tried at all. Haley came back and she figured that ignoring her was the best way to deal with all of it. But she knew that ignoring her was the only way to stay out of it. Peyton ran her fingers through her hair and exhaled. She stood from her seat and walked towards her car.

"I know you are right. But I just can't. Not yet. Sorry about Brooke. I'll keep her off of your back."

"Whatever," Rachel sighed to herself. "Life's too short to stay angry with the past," Rachel yelled to Peyton's retreating form.

"You should really be looking in the mirror the next time you say that," Peyton said as she looked over her shoulder. She had heard Rachel's little comment earlier but chose to ignore it. She was curious as to what Rachel meant but it wasn't her business, the Haley situation was enough for her to deal with.

"Oh and thanks."

"For what?" Rachel asked wondering why Peyton didn't try to argue back at her.

"For looking out for Haley," Peyton said not breaking eye contact. "I may not be her biggest fan right now but everyone needs someone."

She got into her car drove away leaving Rachel there alone with her thoughts again.

**Well that was fun right? Work on chapter six is underway and hopefully we'll have it to you guys much sooner. So thanks for your patience and please let us know what you think. Even if you hate it, I can take the punch honestly, lol. **

**Laterz**


	6. Drunken Words are Sober Thoughts

**A/N: Hi! OMGOTH23 here…please don't hurt us, those of you who are actually still reading this. Things have been really stressful and crazy so that is the reason for the really really ridiculously long overdue update.**

**But as a special treat to you we are updating 2, that's right, TWO chapters at once…YAY!? A slight bribe to keep you interested…maybe but you're definitely not gonna quit on us now are ya? I thought not =D**

**Disclaimer…yea don't own anything, my empty bank account is an attest to that**

**But anyway on with the story…**

**Chapter 6: Drunken Works are Sober Thoughts**

Two weeks later…

Rachel Gatina yawned and rolled out of the bed. She looked over on the other side and smiled. Her roommate and new best friend Haley James, she preferred to leave the "Scott" out, was still sleeping. Rachel would wake up early every day for two reasons. The first reason was Cheer Nazi, a.k.a. Brooke Davis, and her stupid morning sessions but if everyone was there on-time, then Brooke would let them skip the afternoon session, _psh some Nazi._ The second and most important reason for her to get up this fucking early was that she could do her favorite thing in the world.

Watch Haley sleep.

It was the only time of the day when Haley actually looked like she was happy. Rachel reached over and gently brushed a few strands of hair out of Haley's face and smiled. And this was the only reason Rachel was glad that her parents cut her off. Haley didn't need to know that secretly Rachel had enough money to buy a couch; she didn't need to know that she secretly loved spending extra time close to the girl, and she definitely didn't need to know that she was falling in love.

Over the two weeks Rachel had become daring in her morning routines. At first it was a simple glance before dragging herself out of the warmth that was her and Haley's bed then heading off to practice. It slowly turned into a gentle touch to the cheek or stroke of her hair. But recently she realized, after tentative touches, that Haley was a sound sleeper and Rachel used this to her advantage.

Slowly leaning forward Rachel's let her lips whisper over Haley's forehead reveling in the tingles the slight touch left her with. With a heavy sigh and an even heavier heart she left the safety and comfort she felt with Haley for the cold harsh gym that her torture was housed.

~HS~

Haley woke with a stretch reaching out her arms as far as they would allow before finally letting them fall to the cushy bed. Feeling the cold empty bed next to her left her with a feeling she didn't quite understand. Sure she and Rachel had become best friends in two weeks but this was more than missing just a best friend. It didn't help that her dreams had been mixing up all her feelings. She was just so damn confused about all of this.

She should be longing for Nathan's touch but she found herself yearning for Rachel's touch and her dream to become reality. _Why must my life be so complicated? I mean seriously?!? WTF? Married at 16, country wide tour with The Wreckers, parents in who knows what state, practically divorced at 16, friends that can't stand to be in the same room as her, and finding herself increasingly attracted to her new roommate and best friend. Definitely out of the norm for a teenager._

"Enough thinking or you're gonna have a headache for your shift," Haley muttered to herself as she rolled over on her side to check the clock. "Shit!"

Haley sprang out of bed realizing that she only had twenty minutes to get ready and get to the café if she wanted to make it on time.

~HS~

Haley took a look around the small café. The afternoon rush had passed so she was given some time to catch up on her homework. Being MIA for three months then coming back does tend to set you back a couple of steps. These past two weeks had been a tad bit crazy with getting used to her café schedule and school load again but she had some help. Still being in "rockstar" mode, as Rachel liked to call it, left her with a continuous struggle to care about what she was doing. It wasn't like she didn't care, per say, about Karen or school or her job it was just getting back her "Tutor Girl" work ethic that seemed to be the issue.

But she had to get the work ethic back, at least for Karen's sake, after all Karen had been there for her the moment she walked back into Tree Hill. It was good to know that she still had someone from her pre-tour days that still looked out for her. It was calming to know that even though she royally screwed up that someone had her back.

And then there was Rachel; ever since her dreams started Rachel had been consuming her thoughts. Every night various dreams of Rachel would be sprinkled in with the nightmares that had become her life. Just as flashes of her and Rachel in a make out session started to fill her mind she heard the bell signaling that an order was up. _Focus, you're working…besides you can fantasize about Rachel when you get home._

~HS~

"Are you sure about this?" Nathan said as the SUV screeched to a stop in front of Karen's Café.

"Nate, everybody is talking about how Haley dumped you for a chick. You can't let that kinda shit ride." Jason said as he put the car into park.

"Yeah, man, she making you look like a punk. I can't be seen with no punks." Conner chimed in from the back seat.

"I'm not a punk. And I don't see how this has anything to do with the team." Nathan said, _what the fuck does the team care about my life off the court?_

"You know, you gotta squash this shit now. The longer this goes on the worse it's going to look. The younger guys on the team got your back but the seniors…the seniors think you are a joke." Jason started messing with the dials on the radio.

"What?" Nathan was starting to get ticked off.

"Yeah, I heard some of them talk mad shit about you. Saying stuff like Nathan Scott can't run his woman so how is he going to run the team?" Conner said from the back seat.

"I have been carrying those assholes since 9th grade. They have no right!" Nathan grumbled.

"And I kinda think they are right…" Jason mumbled.

"Shut the fuck up, jackass." Nathan said sternly and rolled down the window of the truck. He could see Haley inside waiting on tables and smiling. She looked happy. Happier than when he saw her last. He felt his heart flutter slightly from seeing his wife. But he quickly pushed those feelings down. Conner and Jason may be a pair of dumbasses but they did have a point. He couldn't go one day without somebody asking him how he lost Haley to a girl. He clenched his jaw and glared at the window again. She was supposed to be somewhere crying about the way she fucked their marriage up. Not living in their old apartment with some hot ass model looking chick.

"Let's go."

~HS~

"I'll get that right away," Haley smiled cheerfully to the table she was currently waiting on. She turned at the sound of the door chiming. Her bright smile dulled when she saw who was standing in the doorway, _just fucking great._

Nathan made eye contact with Haley and his heart still fluttered. He had to remind himself that he was here to confront her not to make up with her.

"Haley, we need to talk." He said through clenched teeth.

"Nathan, I'm working," Haley growled slightly not liking the manner that Nathan had chosen to confront her. The cafe was no place to have their imminent yelling match. Karen didn't need to deal with their marital problems any longer; she had been put through enough.

Peyton, who was sitting in one of the corner booths, took in the sight before her. _This can't be good._ She had come here with every intention of talking to Haley but as fate would have it she had chickened out deciding to lay low. But now it looked like she was about to get the show of a lifetime.

"We need to talk now." Nathan raised his voice just enough to get Haley's attention. He grabbed her arm and pulled her away from the table she was waiting on. Not waiting for her response he growled, "what the fuck is going on with you?"

"What the fuck is going on with me?" Haley asked in disbelief as she yanked her arm free of Nathan's grasp.

"What the fuck is going on with you? You have some nerve coming in here and treating me like this." Haley was fuming. There was nothing is this world that could justify Nathan's actions towards her. She hadn't seen or heard from him since that day at his house and now here he is trying bark at her.

"Nerve? You are the one who is making me look like a punk!" Nathan said.

"What?" Haley stammered as she slowly started to realize what Nathan was so upset about.

"Don't play dumb, Haley. Everybody has seen you running around with that new chick." Nathan leaned close to Haley so his face was by her ear.

"You go from fucking Keller to fucking a girl. That's low." Nathan felt a little guilty as soon as the words left his lips but he was trying to hurt Haley again and he knew the words would hit their mark.

"How dare you," she growled. She quickly glanced around the cafe noticing that some of the occupants had taken notice to their argument. "Don't you dare accuse me of something that you have no fucking idea about!"

"You'll defend some fucking redheaded bitch but you don't even care about me. You are so goddamned selfish. That's why I wouldn't take you back...you care about everyone but me..." Nathan fired back at Haley once again trying to hurt her.

"Bullshit!" Haley practically screamed. "I care about you. I cared about you when I shouldn't have. You're the selfish one. You were the one that made me chose. You're the one that forced us into this goddamn situation." Haley took a couple calming breaths trying to keep her thoughts in order. Part of her knew that the source of this wasn't all from Nathan, that it had to be coming from some other influence.

"This is your fault not mine. Don't you dare go blaming this on me or Rachel."

"Ok, so it's my fault that you decided to go and fuck around on me. It's my fault that you jumped into the first warm bed you could find." Nathan growled.

"You are such a fucking liar. You never want to take the blame for any(thing…DELETE) fucking thing you do. You fucking pathetic bitch." Nathan said as the guys slapped him on the back, signaling their approval. He could tell he was hurting her but he still didn't feel that he'd gone far enough.

Haley's will to continue this fight was starting to waver. She was beyond pissed at the way Nathan was acting but his words were hitting her hard. He wasn't even giving her a chance to defend herself and to prove him wrong.

"You don't know what you're talking about," she spoke softly not knowing where her voice had vanished to. It was like all her anger was draining her energy.

"I did not fuck Chris as you like to think," Haley started trying with a last effort to defend herself. "The tour was purely about music, nothing more nothing less."

"I have always been faithful to you," Haley spoke suddenly finding her voice. "I don't deserve this treatment that you and the rest of Tree Hill seem to think that I do. I went after my dream and apparently for anyone but Nathan Scott that's a sin."

Peyton looked on with a proud smile. It was refreshing to see Haley finally taking a stand at defending herself. After Rachel's outburst at practice about Nathan's ultimatum she couldn't help thinking that if everything Rachel said was true. And if it was, then why would Haley just take all the shit that's been thrown at her?

Haley let a small tear roll down her cheek. She couldn't believe that she was shedding more tears over Nathan Scott. Slowly she glanced around the café looking for any form of strength but what she found almost knocked her off her feet. Sitting in a corner booth was none other than Peyton Sawyer. The same Peyton Sawyer that supposedly believed Rachel, _I guess for some people the best friend bond is harder to break._

Shaking her head sadly, Haley lowered her head before running out of the café ignoring Karen's pleas to stay.

~HS~

"Hey, it's my roommate, Rachel... Hey Rachel!" Haley said as she took another long sip from the Smirnoff bottle. When she got home, Haley looked in her pill bottle only to find that she had a few left so instead of using them up, she decided to switch to a different vice. She had gotten halfway through the bottle before she started to feel loopy.

"I heard about what happened with Nathan at the Café. You ok?" Rachel asked as she sat her bag down by the door.

"Sure…I am just married to an asshole…but you know them the breaks…" Haley turned and looked at Rachel. She smiled at her.

"Did I ever tell you, that you are pretty, like really pretty?" Haley asked as she stared at into Rachel's eyes

"Noooo," Rachel dragged out not knowing where Haley was coming from. It seemed that she had come home to yet again find Haley in one of her states; _if the vodka bottle wasn't a hint then the slurring was a red flag. _This always seemed to happen after she had a run in with Nathan or Lucas. She couldn't believe that those Scott men, _more likely boys,_ still had such power over her roommate. However, this time around, Haley seemed a little more aware than she usually did.

"Looks like you've been having a good time without me. And here I thought we were friends," she said in mock hurt.

"Yeah…we are...I just was...having some of whatever the hell this stuff is...and didn't think that you would mind," Haley replied sheepishly as she took another sip from the bottle and showed it to her roommate. "It's really yummy!"

"I think that you've had enough," Rachel smirked at her lightweight of a roommate. She didn't expect Haley to be a heavy drinker but she assumed that the tour had toughened her up. She took the bottle and took a big swig loving the burning sensation the liquid created.

"Some rock star you are, you can't even drink straight vodka tsk, tsk." She mocked hoping to get a reaction from the petite blonde plus drunk Haley seemed a little more fun than the usual mopey Haley she seemed to transform into after a run in with a Scott.

Haley smirked. "Ok first, I didn't recognize the bottle…and second first…I can handle a lot more than Vodka..."

Haley got up and went over to the cabinet where Rachel kept what she called the 'good shit' opened the doors.

"Pick your poison...And I will drink you under this table." She knocked on the counter which wasn't a table but the challenge was still out there and ready to be accepted.

Rachel stood there for a second. She didn't want to take advantage of Haley but chances like this don't come around that often if ever. If she was really going to try and make a move on Haley, this was the best chance she had since the day that they kissed on the couch. And plus maybe, Haley would remember it this time. She had a wicked little grin on her face and decided to go for it.

"A challenge, I like it," Rachel smirked waltzing her way towards Haley making sure to add a little extra oomph to her walk. After all she was trying to get the girl's attention and a little sway to her walk was good start.

"Hmmmm, I don't know what to chose; they're all so delicious."

Haley raised an eyebrow as she watched Rachel's hips sway back and forth. There was something so simple but at the same so sexy about the way those blue jeans hugged Rachel's backside. There had been a couple times when she would catch a glimpse of it when Rachel would wear those boy shorts she liked so much. Every time she did see it, Haley would take a little mental picture and file it away. She found herself staring at the redhead's ass so intently that she missed Rachel picking out the drink of choice.

"Hola Jose, long time, no habla," Rachel smiled as she pulled the handle of Jose from the shelf taking notice that her tank top started to ride up her stomach a little bit. She let stay that for a seconds until she noticed that Haley was sitting there staring at her intently, _Gotcha..._

"Damn..." Haley whispered. Maybe it was the alcohol, but Haley just couldn't take her eyes off of Rachel. She let her eyes drink in every little peek of skin and it was starting to get to her. She started to get these flashes from the dream she had. But what she was seeing in front of her eyes was definitely better than the dream. She watched as Rachel reached up in the cabinet for two shot glasses and she felt like she was going fall out of the chair from watching Rachel move.

"So…umm…what's the game here? Truth or dare…or umm…checkers…"

"No games. You said you could drink me under the table Miss James." Rachel said as she set up two shot glasses. She filled each glass and then leaned over the counter, getting as close as she could to Haley's face without kissing her. Her forehead was up against Haley's and she could feel the singer's breath dancing across her lips. She couldn't help but smile. Being this close to Haley again was better than she imagined.

"Shot for shot. Last girl standing wins."

Rachel stayed in Haley's face for a few extra seconds. Haley smiled and slid her tongue over her top lip slowly. She had done this a few times on the tour with Tripp. They had played it for a month straight with every alcohol beverage known to man. At first she couldn't hang but now thanks to the pills and all of those late drinking sessions with Tripp, she could hang with the best of them. She felt a little bad about tricking Rachel but hey she wanted to see if Haley could beat her. She took the shot glass and downed it.

"Game on..."

**30 minutes and 3/4ths of the bottle later…**

Rachel looked up and couldn't help the internal cry of joy. Haley looked hotter than ever. Her hair was slightly tousled, lips wet from the alcohol, breasts heaving slightly from her erratic breathing. It was like a dream, so perfect. She felt like she was tipsy but she couldn't be tipsy off of…damn how many of these did she have? She had to focus. Haley was right where she wanted her to be. She gave the young tutor another smoldering look.

"You know if you keep looking me like that, I might start thinking...umm stuff..." Haley giggled as she filled the glass once again. Rachel did look amazing. But she always looked amazing even first thing morning. She wanted to tell her but she never said it. However, after drinking half a bottle of Vodka and 3/4 of a bottle of Jose', she was feeling a little brave.

"You are really fucking hot..." She blurted out. Haley quickly slapped her hands over her mouth and started laughing.

"Did I say that out loud?"

"Yes you did," Rachel couldn't help the slight purr to her voice. She was on cloud nine. Haley had just called her hot. She walked around from the other side of the counter and stopped once she was beside Haley's seat. Haley stood from her seat still laughing.

"What'cha doin' now?"

She took a few small steps towards Haley closing the gap between them. Rachel hooked her fingers into the front belt loops of Haley's blue jeans, pulling Haley's lower half closer to her body. When Haley's midsection bumped against hers, she moaned just a little bit.

"I just…wanted to tell you…the feeling is mutual," She whispered never breaking her eyes from Haley's.

"What are you doing..." Haley asked. She could feel Rachel's waist against hers. Her body felt as if there were a thousand butterflies flapping around. She couldn't focus on anything but how much she wanted to touch Rachel. Once again, she spoke her thoughts aloud.

"Because...this is really fucking hot..."

"I'm glad you see things my way," Rachel smirked. She moved her fingers slightly so that they were now toying with the waistline of Haley's jeans. She fought back a moan when she felt just how silk smooth Haley's skin was; it was like touching a baby's skin, _sooooo soft._

Her head was swimming. Maybe it was because she was drunk or maybe it was because Rachel was finally doing the thing she had dreamt about. She gently put her hand on the waist of the redhead. She dragged the tips of her fingers across Rachel's flat stomach. She was so different from Nathan. She moved her hands to the small of the taller girl's back.

Haley couldn't exactly remember when but at some point during their little drinking challenge Rachel had decided to take her tank top off leaving her in her sports bra and jeans. But she wasn't about to complain.

"I want you to do me a favor...I need for you to do it..."Haley looked into Rachel's eyes. And she saw something that she had seen before. It was that same thing she saw when she had that argument with Rachel a few weeks ago. Haley smiled a sexy lil smile and continued.

"I need you to do it now..."

"Anything for you," Rachel whispered still trying to fight the moan dying to get out. Haley's hands were like magic as they ghosted over her skin.

"Kiss me..." Haley held her breath and waited for Rachel to make her move. She had to have read the look right. This is what Rachel wanted, right? She pulled the redhead's body closer to hers and her breasts pushed against hers.

"I was hoping you'd say that," Rachel smirked. She inched closer not going the full way. Despite Haley's request she still needed to know that this was what Haley wanted, not just the alcohol speaking.

"Don't think...just fucking do it" Haley moaned. She couldn't take this much longer as she stood there waiting.

And that was all Rachel needed before crashing her lips onto Haley's. She had dreamt about this night ever since Haley had kissed her two weeks ago. And now that she had her dream she wasn't about to let her go. She snaked her arms around Haley's waist pulling her even closer.

Haley couldn't believe how good this felt in real life. Rachel's lips were as soft as she had always imagined them. Haley opened her mouth and allowed the kiss to get deeper. Her mouth tasted so good. She could candy and she could still taste the Jose that they had drunk. Haley slowly let her tongue enter into Rachel's mouth.

Rachel moaned when she felt Haley deepen the kiss. _Un-fucking believable! _Cloud nine couldn't even begin to explain how amazing this was. She let her tongue mingle with Haley's relishing in the feeling of being so close, so connected with the smaller girl.

She knew that air was becoming an issue but it barely registered in her mind that oxygen was necessary. Haley was consuming her thoughts. She pulled back reluctantly. She was panting heavily. Looking at Haley she could see that she was having the same breathing issues, _she looks so cute, eyes shut, chest heaving...scratch that she's sexy as sin._

Haley gasped as she let the air filled her lungs. She couldn't even form thoughts anymore. This was driving her insane. God she had to have more of this. No she needed more of this.

Haley looked at the counter top and then back at Rachel.

"Up."

Rachel looked puzzled but just for a minute, _she wants on the counter, me likey._ Rachel brought her hands to Haley's hips and helped her onto the counter walking instantly between her thighs. She couldn't help but think that this was where she was meant to be.

"More..." Haley growled and then pulled Rachel's mouth back to hers once again. She didn't waste any time and slid her tongue between her roommates' lips. She wanted to feel her tongue against Rachel's. God she never thought somebody could drive her body so crazy just from a kiss. She let her hands play in the long fiery locks of Rachel's.

Rachel moaned when she felt Haley run her delicate fingers through her hair, _I wonder what they would feel like...oh God!_ She felt Haley's lips latch onto her neck sucking away like a thirsty vampire.

Haley sucked as much as Rachel's neck into her mouth as she could. The combination of sweat and perfume gave her neck this taste that was indescribable. She worked that little area of Rachel's skin. Tugging at it with her lips and nibbling it slightly with her teeth. She released that patch of skin and dragged her tongue across Rachel's throat and she did the same thing on the other side of her neck.

Rachel tilted her head opposite to Haley's movements. She knew that with the force that Haley was sucking her neck she was going to have some major hickeys tomorrow but she didn't care, _you're going to care when she doesn't remember in the morning._ Rachel's brow furrowed at the nagging voice, _she has to remember...doesn't she?_

"I want more..." Haley growled as she broke away from Rachel's neck. She wanted to put her mouth on every bit of Rachel's flesh. She looked down at the cheerleader's chest which seemed to be heaving from her actions. The sports bra that she was wearing didn't conceal the fact that Rachel's breasts were simply amazing. Haley slid her fingertips to the hem line and waited to see if Rachel was going to stop her.

_Dreams do come true! Wait a minute…there is no way in hell Haley would do this._ Rachel looked into Haley's eyes trying to see if there was any hint of hesitation. The booze and her body's desire for Haley were clouding her mind's eye. She was losing her resistance to Haley's actions quickly. Her hand was so close to her breast, it was burning at her skin. Raising her hand, Rachel grabbed onto Haley's guiding it upwards until she was gently cupping her bra covered breast.

Haley's eyes widened. She couldn't believe how amazing her breast felt. It was so different than hers and yet it was just as nice as when she touched her own. No it was better. God everything on Rachel felt better. Haley pressed her mouth against Rachel's again. She gave Rachel's breast another squeeze. God she had to feel them. The fabric was taking something away from this. Her mind was being pushed into an unbelievable frenzy and she blurted out the first thing that popped into her head.

"Take this fucking thing off..." Haley was a little surprised by the tone of her voice. She had never heard herself sound like that.

"What?" Rachel asked, _did she really say what I think she did? _The determined look on Haley's face told her she wasn't joking. _Goodbye Haley, hello Jose._ "No."

Haley jerked back and looked into her roommates eyes. "No?"

"Yes...No," Rachel said sternly not liking that this had gotten so serious. Her buzz was suddenly gone along with the high from kissing Haley. The thought that all this was just because of some alcohol was making her sick, _she doesn't want this...she doesn't want me._ Rachel stepped out from Haley's thighs and turned her back to Haley. She was hiding the tears that were forming behind her eyes. She didn't need Haley to know how much this was hurting her.

Haley couldn't understand what was going on. They went from sixty to zero just like that. She didn't understand it. Was this some kind of a game? No. Rachel wouldn't do that. Her mind was reeling from upset to confused to horny to confused. She slid down off of the counter and stood next to her roommate. She couldn't even look at her.

"What just...umm..." Haley shook her head trying to get the focus back long enough to complete a thought.

"Rachel, are we ok?"

Rachel couldn't even begin to think of how to explain this to Haley. _We are far from ok._ "I know this isn't what you want," Rachel whispered not trusting her voice with anything louder. She knew that she was close to losing it, she was close to running back home and going to her, _at least Makayla wanted this._

Haley crossed her arms and walked in front of Rachel. "I wanted to have some fun...I thought that was what this was..."

"Didn't you like...it?" Haley asked tentatively suddenly realizing that maybe she had read the "signals" wrong.

_Did I like it? Of course I liked it...I've been dreaming about this since I met you. I just want you to want this._ "Yeah I liked it but..." Rachel trailed off not knowing how to tell Haley that she had a crush on her.

Haley stood there looking at Rachel and she wanted to kiss her. She stepped forward and tried to kiss her again. But instead of kissing her lips, she placed a kiss on her cheek.

"My head is mush so I am going to bed." Haley stumbled towards the bedroom feeling the familiar 'Pass Out' symptoms floating around her head. She needed to get some sleep before she dropped in the middle of the living room.

"Night," Rachel said meekly wanting Haley to stay with her but at the same time needing the time alone. She continued to hug her body knowing that she was in for a whole lot of hurt when Haley remembered this in the morning.

Ok so I've done what I think needs to be done. Use this copy and just change the colors because there are a few things that I deleted like spelling and stuff.


	7. All About the Benefits

**Disclaimer: Yup still own nothing**

**Chapter 7: All About the Benefits**

To say that Rachel woke up this morning would've been a misstatement. Last night she couldn't sleep a wink; her mind was continuously going over the events that'd taken place between her and Haley. Her skin was still tingling from where Haley's hand's had wandered. Never before had someone left such and affect on her, not even Mikayla. And that thought alone scared the shit out of her. She had known Mikayla for over five years and she had only known Haley for a little over two weeks.

_Why did she have to be drunk last night? Why couldn't she just want me when she's sober? _And these were the thoughts that accompanied the memories of her and Haley. These were the questions that kept nagging her thoughts every minute of every day. _At least I have some time to think before Haley gets up, she may have gone on a cross country tour but that girl sure is a lightweight._ But she was the lightweight that Rachel was starting to fall…_STOP. RIGHT. THERE. You are not about to think what I think you're about to think._ Rachel scolded herself. It seemed that her hormones and heart were betraying her brain.

"Ugh…I feel like…ugh…" Haley grumbled as she staggered out of the bedroom hungover once again, _damn Scott brothers_. She couldn't believe how easily upset she got whenever she ran into one of her friends, _I guess it wasn't just any old run in…Nathan practically attacked me._ She hated that the only way she could deal with any encounter with her friends resulted in drinking until she couldn't remember going to bed, well not completely forget. She could've sworn that Rachel had followed her to bed last night but waking up this morning to find the redhead's side of the bed empty left her confused especially after her very life like dream staring Rachel and the kitchen countertop. It was so real that she swore she even tasted Rachel as they engaged in a very heated make out, _I guess lack of a sex life makes dreams that more intense._

_So much for having time to sort this out without her...here goes nothing._ Rachel let out a small sigh not wanting Haley to hear. "Some rockstar you are. Can't even handle a little ol' hangover," she mocked playfully wanting to avoid the inevitable conversation.

"Yeah, well I am a lil' out of practice...did you sleep out here?" Haley said knowing that it was a lie. She had been through several of these hangovers before but she didn't want to dwell on the fact that her hangovers, and drinking, were getting more a more severe with each passing encounter with her past. Besides she was more concerned about Rachel sleeping out on the couch and not in the bed with her. She tried to remember what exactly happened last night but the only thing she kept seeing in her head was that dream. It was so real but all of the dreams had felt real. Haley sat down on the stool and placed her head on the counter.

_Just once I would like to go to bed without wondering how I got there…_, Haley thought as she tried to clear the cobwebs.

Rachel looked sadly at Haley. It had become a regular occurrence that she would need to help the young songstress out in the morning. Without hesitation she swiftly walked over to the cabinet containing the Advil then grabbing a glass of water before gently placing it on the counter not wanting to elicit a lot of noise.

"Thank you..." Haley whispered. As she swallowed down the pill and some water, she couldn't help but notice that Rachel didn't answer the question from before.

"So you didn't answer the question..." Haley urged while walking over to the couch, _maybe some space will help._

"Yea," Rachel sighed softly while running a hand through her hair. _How am I supposed to tell her that we hooked up? Better yet how am I gonna tell her that she was the one that initiated it? And that I was the one who stopped it._

"Do you really wanna know?" She asked quietly hoping that Haley wouldn't be able to hear.

"Did something happen?" Haley asked as Rachel followed her to the couch and sat down. She had never seen Rachel like this before. She seemed to be holding back or hiding something.

"Yes," she responded with a reluctant sigh. _Why does this have to be so hard? _Rachel could see the confusion and curiosity swimming in Haley's eyes and she wasn't sure how she was going to react to this news.

Haley started to get really worried. She shifted her position so she could focus all her attention on Rachel who was still standing in the kitchen. She only had one friend and she was starting to think that she had done something terrible. And she couldn't remember what had happened before. For some reason, the dream just continued to run around in her head and now she was even more worried than before.

"Just tell me..." Haley said as calmly as she could.

"You asked for it," Rachel whispered hating that fact that her voice had suddenly disappeared. She paused for a moment. For a second she thought about lying to her again. But this was different than the last time. This was more than just a kiss. She didn't know what was going to happen but she had to tell Haley the truth. _Here goes nothing…_

"Well...um...we kinda hooked up."Rachel said as she tried her best to mumble the last part.

"We did what? I mean I would remember...no way. Are you sure?" Haley asked.

"Am I sure?!" Rachel snapped not quite understanding why she was suddenly on edge. She knew that it wasn't Haley's fault that she didn't remember, she was wasted, but it still hurt not being remembered.

"Do you think I gave myself these hickeys?" She pulled back her hair revealing the twin marks on either side of her neck.

And as soon as Haley saw the hickeys everything snapped into focus. The challenge, the drinking game, kissing Rachel, moving over to the countertop, and then feeling Rachel's breasts in her hands for the first time.

All of it…

"Holy shit..." Haley shot up from her seat and started pacing around the living room. It really happened. She and Rachel really did it. It happened.

"Haley…" Rachel watched as Haley paced finding her reaction quite comical, _at least she didn't bolt._

"I don't know what to ... holy shit..." Haley couldn't believe it. She thought the whole thing was another in the unending series of dreams she had been having but it had actually happened. No wonder Rachel slept on the couch. She probably scared the shit out of her. If she could just get her stomach to stop doing that flip-flopping thing then maybe she could figure out what she was feeling.

"Haley?" Rachel asked tentatively. She couldn't really tell what was going on with Haley but the pacing was actually starting to make her nervous. _Why am I suddenly nervous around her? I hate the new me._

"I don't know what to say..." Haley whispered. It was like a dream come true. At least she thought it was. _So if we did hook up then why did I go to bed alone? Was I really that bad?_ But what did it mean to Rachel? Why can't she say anything?

"Did you like it?" Haley asked. It seemed like a good idea to ask because, well, she did wonder.

To say Rachel was shocked would've been the understatement of the century. Not only had Haley stayed inside the apartment after she found out about their hook up she had asked if she liked it.

"Did I like it?" She asked in amazement.

"I mean...I dunno...is that what I should be asking?" Haley mumbled.

The shock immediately wore off the moment she heard the hesitation in Haley's voice. "You shouldn't have to ask that at all," Rachel said with a smirk, _I can't believe this girl doesn't know how good she is! _

Haley stood there as every single second of the evening came flooding back to her. She did smile a little from Rachel's words but she found herself back at her original point.

"So why did you sleep out here?"

_Clearly she doesn't remember everything._ Rachel let out a frustrated sigh. _Why does everything have to be so fucked up?_

"Are you sure you remember everything that happened last night? Not just bits and pieces but all of it?"

Haley's closed her eyes and tried to picture what happened after she put the hickeys on Rachel's neck. And she couldn't see it. She couldn't remember what the hell could have gone wrong between then and now.

"I remember everything but why I woke up alone… so if I was _so _good then what happened…" Haley said.

"Something…" Rachel said not really wanting to remember what happened.

"I mean did I say something wrong?" Haley asked. What was this feeling she was having? What was this nagging feeling? What did she really want to say?

"Yea ya did," Rachel sighed. She looked up to meet Haley's eyes finally noticing that she had stopped pacing around the living room.

"I guess you could say that I realized something and we needed to stop." She couldn't help but feel guilty. She had no intention of hurting Haley but if things had gone further the guilt she would've been feeling would've been ten times worse.

Haley crossed her arms and started staring at her feet. And she remembered exactly what she had said last night when she was on the countertop.

"Take this fucking thing off…" Haley whispered.

"Yeah, I just thought it was the Jose talking and not you. I didn't want you to do something that you might regret." Rachel said.

Haley finally knew what was bugging her. What that nagging feeling was actually trying to tell her.

"I didn't want to stop," she sighed while lowering her gaze from Rachel's. She didn't know why but she just couldn't look at Rachel while they were having this talk.

"What?!?" Rachel couldn't contain the dumbstruck expression from slipping through her lips. She was one hundred percent sure that the alcohol had taken over.

"Really?"

Haley took a deep breath. The dreams were one thing but to actually touch someone. To feel something other than completely numb was very comforting. She still hadn't turned around to face Rachel because she knew that she would lose her nerve if she continued down this path.

"I have been dreaming about being with you." Haley confessed.

"You aren't the only one…" Rachel whispered. It was actually nice to know that she wasn't the only one in the apartment who was dreaming.

"And last night I know I was drunk but I know that I didn't want to stop." She paused to gather her nerve once more.

"You made me feel...I mean…"

Rachel knew that if she were to look in a mirror right now she would look like a cartoon; eyes bulging out, eyebrows raised, mouth gasping for air. Honestly, she was glad that Haley wasn't looking at her; she needed to keep her calm appearance. After a moment she composed herself before taking the few strides to close the distance between them. Gently she placed her hands on Haley's shoulders forcing the smaller girl to face her. When Haley remained staring at her feet Rachel placed a caring finger under her chin lifting her gaze.

"I only stopped because I thought the alcohol had taken over. After everything you've been through I didn't want you to do something that would make you feel uncomfortable around me."

"Yeah because I am real comfortable now..." Haley smirked. She suddenly became very aware of how close Rachel was to her. Rachel was just so damn amazing. She could barely be in the same room as her. Her heart was racing just a tiny bit. And the fact that she could see how tight Rachel's top was…_GOD am I really having these thoughts right now?_

"Well I might be able to change that…" Rachel smiled at her once again. She loved having Haley this close to her and she knew that she wanted to kiss Haley again. But Haley had a lot on her plate. And she wasn't sure if starting a new relationship was what she and Haley needed. She did have one idea and even though it had never worked for her any other time she had to give it a shot, _besides it might actually work this time._

"What did you have in mind?" Haley finally stopped trying to avert her gaze from Rachel's. She didn't know where this was going but Haley knew that she wanted to feel something other than the numbness that had been following her. She gently slid her hand into Rachel's and waited.

"Well," she started not being able to contain her lip from curving up into a smirk. "There is this little thing called 'friend's with benefits'. I know that I'm in no place for a relationship and seeing that you're still technically in one..." Rachel let her voice trail off slightly not knowing exactly what bringing up Haley's failed marriage would do.

"Friends with benefits?" Haley asked and she remembered that Brooke had this same setup with Felix. And that was like watching a car crash in slow motion. But that didn't necessarily mean that this arrangement was going to turn into a disaster. It wasn't like they were going to turn into a couple either and she was a little relieved that Rachel didn't want more. _Maybe this could be a good thing. _ It would just be two friends helping each other out, no more no less. Plus it had been like 6 months since she had any kind of sex. Haley closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

"Kiss me."

"As you wish," Rachel whispered before closing the gap between their lips. The kiss was slow at first. She didn't want to push Haley too far, well at least not at first. She wanted to make sure that this was really what Haley wanted. She gently closed her lips on the singer's once again. Even though it was first thing in the morning, Haley's lips were just as soft and sweet as they were the night before.

Haley moaned and opened her mouth into the kiss. She let her tongue slip into the redhead's mouth wanting to taste as much of her as possible. She felt like her entire body was tingling. It was the most amazing feeling that she had ever had. There was something inside of her that wanted more. It was the same voice that had caused the first 'hook-up' to end so abruptly. Haley's hands slowly started to play with the hem of Rachel's top.

Rachel couldn't deny Haley's tongue and eagerly accepted it. She let hers rub against the singer's and was impressed with the strength of it. God, did it feel good to be kissing her but the real thrill was knowing that Haley was going to remember it. Her eyebrows shot into her hairline when she felt Haley's hands toying with her shirt. But her hands were forgotten as the enticing pleasure that Haley's tongue brought her clouded out everything but the fact that their mouths were moving together. Just as Haley's fingers touched the silky skin of Rachel's abdomen the shrill cry of an alarm clock could be heard throughout the apartment.

Haley tried to keep the kiss going. She pressed into the kiss almost forcing her tongue as deep as she could into the taller girl's mouth. She moaned loudly when the cheerleader's tongue flicked against hers again. She wanted more and she could feel it all the way down to her toes. But Rachel finally pulled away once air was needed.

"Saved by the bell?" Rachel asked after reluctantly pulling her mouth from Haley's.

"Not even close…" Haley grunted as she let her fingers continued to dance over Rachel's skin. Her heart was pounding. She had never been this worked up before. Her mind was a cloud of erotic wants and desires. The only thing that Haley could understand was that her entire body wanted to be Rachel's plaything.

"I want you..." Haley kissed Rachel once more enjoying the feeling of the girl's mouth on hers. She felt like she was kissing a live wire because every time her mouth touched Rachel's, she felt a charge go through her body.

"Haley...we need...to...school." Rachel managed to get out between kisses. Rachel could sense the urgency in Haley's kisses but knew that things couldn't go any further, _since when am I the responsible one?_

"School…are you sure…" Haley pouted.

Rachel looked into Haley's eyes and saw the desire and the need that existed. She knew that if she asked, Haley would gladly skip school and stay here with her. And even though she wanted to stay and spend the rest of the day exploring every single inch of this girl's body, Rachel knew what had to be done. If Haley wanted to graduate she couldn't miss another day.

"Yeah, I am sure."

"Fine. Just one more kiss, please?" Haley asked not releasing her hands from Rachel's hips.

"If you insist, but then we have to go…" Rachel answered surprised at how responsible that sounded.

They pressed their mouths together once again. Haley could not believe that just kissing Rachel was driving her so crazy. She felt like she was high as a kite. Even though she knew that they would have a chance to continue this later, her body kept saying otherwise. She deepened the kiss again allowing her tongue to rub against the taller girl's. She let her tongue whirl into the redhead's mouth until she needed to take a breath.

"School...damn school..." Haley panted.

"Yea...school," Rachel panted. This had to have been the first time in a long time that a simple kiss had left her wanting more. She almost fell over once Haley broke the kiss. The desire and need emitting from Haley was so intense that it was quickly filling the room with lust.

"Are you really really sure?" Haley asked playfully and planted another kiss on Rachel's lips. Hoping that maybe the redhead would want to stay there and make out some more.

"Yes," Rachel said in a surprisingly forceful tone.

"If you want to graduate before 2011, then yes. Plus Brooke would have my head if I missed practice."

"Shit." Haley mumbled. Rachel was right and she didn't want to be the cause of Brooke/Rachel round 3. She took a step away from Rachel and then she paused for a moment trying to come down from the moment they just shared.

"Yeah me too." Rachel said as she walked in the direction of the bathroom for a very cold shower.

**Twenty minutes later…**

Haley stood in the living room waiting for Rachel and when she came out of the room wearing her workout clothes, Haley felt the sensation to pounce. Rachel caught that gleam in her roommate's eyes and shook her head.

"School." Rachel said as she strode across the floor to the front door.

Haley sighed knowing that once Rachel opened the door the little world that they had built would be gone for at least 8 hours and Haley didn't want it to be over just yet. So before Rachel could open the door, Haley stepped in front of her. She gently slid her arms around the cheerleader's waist and held her tightly.

"Is hugging a benefit?" Haley whispered into Rachel's ear hoping that she wasn't crossing some unspoken line that had been set up by this new deal.

"Of course it is..." Rachel whispered. She held on to her roommate for a few more seconds and allowed herself to imagine that they could be more than this. That in a perfect world, Haley wouldn't be so broken and neither would she for that matter. And in this perfect world, they could get past all of this shit that seemed to be surrounding them and that they could be a real couple. Rachel could feel a tear slip down her cheek. She wanted that more than anything. But this arrangement, it was all that Haley could handle and part of Haley was better than no part at all.

"Let's go ok." Rachel said as she pulled back from the hug and wiped her eyes.

~HS~

Haley sat down at the table and tried to ignore the snickers and the giggles. The news about her and Nathan's throw down at Karen's had made the rounds and once again she was the number one topic for gossip at Tree Hill High.

Again.

She wanted to stand on the table and scream 'Shut up!' as loud as she could. Wasn't there anything else going on in the world? It was Tree Hill something was bound to take the focus off of her at some point. She just had to survive long enough for something else to happen.

"Here's hoping…"Haley stared at her lunch but she wasn't really hungry. Her stomach was still doing this flip -flop thing since she left the apartment this morning. She had been thinking about kissing Rachel all morning long. She couldn't believe just how much she enjoyed that kiss and how she could still feel it. She smiled and opened her water. Rachel was about the only good thing she had right now and it made her days a little less hard. As soon as she had that thought, Haley looked up and saw the girl that had been on her mind all morning.

"Hey." Haley said.

"Hi," Rachel replied with a chipper tone. The rumor mill was cranking hard today and she knew that Haley would need all the support she could get. She took a seat across from the girl not really knowing if their friendship was going to give the gossip girls more fuel.

"I would ask you how your day is going but...yea," Rachel sighed hating the uneasiness that was coming over her.

"Well so far, I have been told that I threw a coffee pot at Nathan and broke a window in the restaurant, or that I tried to stab him in the neck with a fork and so on…" Haley rolled her eyes and started playing with her food.

"I swear you would think nothing ever happens in this crap hole. Don't let it get to you…" Rachel said trying to sound supportive.

"You would figure I would be used to it by now." Haley sighed.

"You shouldn't have to get used to it. This isn't something that a person should have to get used to."

"So what should I do?" Haley asked still swirling around whatever this was on her plate.

"I know it may be easier said than done but you should ignore it, all of it. You deserve so much more than to put up with the shit that people are throwing at you. You did nothing wrong and they just need something to talk about because their lives are just so boring." Rachel said.

"And if the high road doesn't work?" Haley asked.

"Then I'll break their fucking faces." Rachel said with a smile on her face. She would honestly do anything to protect this girl from harm.

Haley smiled and just like that, she started to feel a little better. Just being this close to Rachel seemed to brighten up her day.

"How was practice?" Haley asked and Rachel's expression changed from a pleasant smile into a sad and tired frown.

"Don't remind me," Rachel sighed while slamming her head to the table.

"For some god fucking awful reason Brooke decided to go all PMS on the squad and make us do laps. Just as we all started packing up she nonchalantly mentions that we have practice for 3 hours right after school." Rachel sounded tired just from talking about it.

"3 hours...so I guess I am on my own for a ride home…" Haley pouted.

"Unless you want to be a witness to my torture then yes you will," Rachel mumbled still in her slouching position. She didn't know why Brooke was suddenly being a bitch, well bitchier than usual. She could only chalk it up to the whispers going around school about Haley and Nathan's little encounter at Karen's but that was none of her business. But that was the problem with small town drama; if it's one person's business then it was everyone's prerogative to know about it.

"But that would mean having to see Brooke and Peyton," Rachel finished knowing that Haley wasn't in any state to deal with a Brooke lashing.

"I am not afraid of them. And I just want to be near you…" Haley whispered.

"I like being near you too." Rachel lifted her head with a lazy smile, all the drained energy suddenly coming back to her at Haley's admission.

"If you want me to wait for you, I will..." Haley asked. If she went home alone she was sure that she would just sit around the apartment until she got depressed enough to start drinking or pill popping. And when she was with Rachel, she felt just a little bit stronger and a little bit more like herself. She felt safe with her and she knew that Rachel would take care of her. But she didn't want to be the cause of another fight between Rachel and the squad.

"I know that you're not scared of Brooke or Peyton and I would love to have you watch me but I can see the stress that all the talk is causing you and it's not fair," Rachel protested knowing that it would be best for Haley to get away from this school as soon as possible.

"But..." Haley started to say but Rachel cut her off.

"But nothing," Rachel said sternly. Haley may not know it but she was doing what was best for her. "Go home, get some rest, forget about all the jerks at this school and I'll be home in no time."

"Fine... When did you get so bossy?" Haley stuck her lip out and crossed her arms.

"I've always been bossy, you've just never had the pleasure of experiencing it," Rachel replied with a sexy smirk.

"I see...ok, I'll do what you say." Haley said. It actually felt good to have somebody that cared bossing her around.

"Rachel?"

"Yeah…"

"Remember what we were doing this morning?" Haley whispered.

"How could I forget," Rachel says keeping her smirk plastered on her lips. Haley always looked so cute when she was trying to find her words. She didn't know what Haley was cooking up in that brain of hers but she was definitely looking forward to it.

"I can't stop thinking about it." Haley admitted. She honestly could still feel those lips on hers. That smirk was driving her crazy.

"Neither can I," Rachel says honestly. It was strange but this little arrangement felt more like a relationship than two friends just partaking in some more than friendly benefits, well at least that's how it felt to her.

Haley looked into Rachel's eyes. They may have called this little arrangement friends with benefits but there were times when she could swear that there was something deeper going on. It reminded her of when she and Nathan first got together; there was this feeling that they could be something more. And she wanted to explore that but she didn't want to make things complicated. Rachel had said that she didn't want anything more. Haley sighed and started to accept the way things were.

"I wish we were at home."

"Me too Haley," Rachel said with a raised eyebrow. If someone had told her two weeks ago, when she first met sad and moping Haley, that she would be the one continuously talking about their encounter she would've called them mad. But now, now she was starting to see the real Haley shining through that shell of a Haley that she had fallen into. This Haley was carefree and happy, truly happy. And this was the Haley that was capturing Rachel's heart. The girls sat there for a few seconds longer not wanting to come out of the little bubble that surrounded them. Rachel could feel herself moving closer to Haley. It was like she was on an invisible thread and Haley was moving towards her as well.

"God I want you, Rachel." Haley whispered.

"I never would've pegged you for the nympho type…" Rachel whispered back.

"But if you must know...I can't wait until you get home because I really really want to..." Haley started to say but magically the bell rang and stopped her train of thought.

"Now that is being saved by the bell..." Haley laughed as she hopped up from the table and started getting her things together.

"Until this afternoon then…" Rachel simply laughed as she watched Haley hastily gather her belongings.

"Yes indeed…" Haley smiled at her roommate and headed off to class.

~HS~

Haley walked out of the doors and exhaled deeply. Even though Rachel had boosted her self-esteem to an all-time high, she just kept to herself and tried to avoid most people. At least she had been able to look forward to the time that she and Rachel were going to spend together. She couldn't help but smile as she made her across the quad.

"I was looking for you today." A voice said from behind her.

Haley felt her stomach start flip flopping, and not in the good way, around as she turned to see that it was her best, well former best, friend Lucas Scott.

"W-Why?" She stuttered hating her voice for betraying her.

"I heard about what happened at my mom's." Lucas Scott said. In truth after talking with Nathan earlier he wasn't ready to forgive her but he did want to be sure she was ok.

"And what? You're here to yell at me for trying to stop your brother from making a scene?" Haley snapped not in the mood for anymore of the Scott bullshit, she had had her fair share to last her a lifetime.

"Haley, what else was he supposed to think? You leave without telling anybody and then you come back and everyone is supposed to just forgive you!" Lucas snapped back.

"No, I didn't expect everyone to just forgive me. I expected that my _friends_ would at least give me the time of day to explain," Haley seethed.

"But I guess that's my bad, I mean after all you were listening to Nathan the entire time telling you that I left without a reason. Well guess what? Nathan Scott lied! Oooooohhh big shocker there," she said waving her hands sarcastically.

"Haley, Nathan has nothing to do with this! This is between you and me!" Lucas dropped his book bag on the ground.

"I was your best friend and you didn't even say anything! And now you are running around with some girl who is making Brooke's life a living hell! What the hell is wrong with you?" Lucas didn't want to yell but he had been holding in his feelings for so long that he couldn't hold back anymore.

"You think I don't know that you're my best friend?! You think that I didn't want to tell you? I wanted to tell you so bad that I was finally being given the chance to live my dream but I couldn't, I just couldn't. I was already dealing with Nathan's ultimatum; do you think I wanted to deal with another one?" Haley screamed not caring who could be watching this.

"And as for Rachel, you have absolutely no right to be mad at her. She's only pissing off Brooke because Rachel is the only person in this town that is actually being nice to me! Rachel has done nothing to Brooke expect stand up for me!"

"I have tried to see this from your side Haley. And you know what? You are wrong. You fucked up everything and I really don't see why you even bothered to come back. You only care about yourself." Lucas said wanting to hurt Haley like she did when she left town.

Without thinking or hesitating, Haley slapped Lucas across the face as hard as she could and she didn't caring that her hand was now burning with pain. "How dare you! How dare you say that? You don't know what Nathan put me through. You don't know how hard it was to leave. You don't know what it's like knowing that you will always be second in the eyes of a loved one. And you sure as hell don't know me!"

"Well I am glad I don't." Lucas picked up his bag and glared at Haley. He couldn't believe that she just slapped him like that.

"You are so lucky right now." Lucas said through clenched teeth and turned to walk away.

"And why is that?" Haley yelled not liking what Lucas was insinuating. "Fuck you Lucas Scott! Like father like son!" Haley screamed at his retreating form when he didn't respond.

Lucas stopped and made his way back over to Haley. He stood there silently for a few seconds. He was so angry at that moment and all he wanted to do was to say something to hurt Haley, something that would hurt her badly.

"You know what? Fuck you too. If there is one person in Tree Hill that is acting like Dan Scott it's not me, it's you. You are a selfish bitch who deserves everything that has happened to her. So you stay the fuck away from me, my mom, my friends and the restaurant. Because we don't want you around us any more than we want Dan around."

"You're gonna regret that," Haley whispered suddenly feeling all the wind knocked out of her. She didn't realize how much she was being like Dan, and she couldn't stand the thought that she had turned into him.

"Maybe you weren't listening. I don't care." Lucas turned once again and walked away.

"Why?" Haley could feel her heart pounding against her chest. She could feel it; she could actually feel her world falling to pieces. She let out a shaky breath before heading to her apartment, to her escape, to her booze.

~HS~

"What a fucking day," Rachel groaned as she dragged herself through the apartment door dropping her gym and school bag with a thud. She didn't notice Haley which she found odd, she half expected Haley to jump her after the way she was talking earlier. Shrugging it off she dragged her practically limp body over the counter before plopping herself on a stool and resting her forehead on the cool surface.

"SSSSSSSSH...." A voice said from the couch.

"I am waiting fer Rachel..."

"Haley?" Rachel said in shock. She nearly jumped out of her skin at the sound of Haley's voice.

"Hello Stranger..." Haley's head popped up from behind the arm of the couch and smiled.

"Are you ok over there?" Rachel asked.

"I am fine...I jus' was waitin' fer my really hot roommate and now you're here..." Haley said as she brought the practically empty bottle of Jose up to her lips.

Rachel let out an exasperated sigh, _why couldn't she be sober? Just for one fucking night!_

"I love this stuff do you got anymore...this one is like…empty or something…" Haley tossed the bottle on the floor and watched it roll across the carpet.

"No," Rachel sighed. "I don't have anymore." _Lie, but maybe she's too drunk to remember the second bottle._

"Damn..." Haley mumbled as she sat up from the couch. She looked at Rachel and saw the expression on her face.

"Are you mad at me? You look like you are kinda mad at me…" Haley asked. Man did her head feel heavy.

"Yea...kinda," Rachel sighed once again. She thought that since they made their arrangement that Haley wouldn't feel the need to get wasted all the time, _once again you couldn't be any more wrong._

"Why? Cause I drank the Jose without you?" Haley asked.

"No because you had to drink the Jose in the first place," Rachel said hating that her voice rose involuntarily but this was getting aggravating. And she felt like she needed to say something that would knock some sense into Haley.

"But I needed it...just like I need you right now..." Haley said hoping that Rachel would move on. She didn't want a lecture; she wanted to escape from the pain that evolved from her talk with Lucas earlier.

"I know we said friends with benefits but this isn't you, this isn't the "friend" that I struck the deal with...this isn't you," Rachel whispered the last part.

"Look...I have been laughed at and picked on and told I am not the same person by every single person I know." Haley said through clenched teeth. She was so frustrated that she could barely get her words out without shaking.

"My best friends look at me like I am some kind of monster every single day and now you are doing it too. I am sitting here saying I want you and you wanna start with me..." Haley pulled her shirt over her head and pulled her jeans off. She was standing there in just her bra and panties and to her surprise she didn't feel nervous or afraid to let the redhead see her like this.

"I am tired of talking about what is wrong with me and why did I do this or that. I just want to feel something! I just want you to make this feeling going away!"

"You know that you'll stop feeling numb when you quit that," she said pointing to the empty Jose bottle; at this point it was her brains last effort to try and stop the inevitable from happening. Rachel let out a heavy sigh. She knew that this was wrong; she knew that they shouldn't do this with Haley being in this state but she couldn't stop her eyes from traveling all over Haley's gorgeous body.

"I don't want to be numb. I just want you..."Haley reached behind her back and unhooked her bra. She let it slide down her arms slowly revealing her breasts to her roommate. _Please let this work._

"Gorgeous," Rachel breathed as she watched the thin material fall from Haley's shoulders. Any thought of halting their actions, her aching muscles, Haley's intoxication were thrown out the window. She swiftly closed the distance between them so she was within inches of Haley's petite frame.

"Touch me..." Haley gasped as she watched Rachel come closer to her. Her heart was racing and she was suddenly very aware of everything that was going on. Instead of going straight for Haley's breasts Rachel let her fingers dance over the soft skin of her abdomen absolutely thriving from the shiver she let out.

"Please...don't make me wait..." Haley gasped. She could feel the goose bumps rising on her exposed skin. It was like Rachel could read her mind, her sober one, knowing exactly where and how she liked to be touched. As skill that had taken Nathan months to learn. He was so damn hesitant about pressuring her that he didn't even bother using his hands while they kissed. And she loved that someone knew her body in that way without having to spell it out.

"Patience," Rachel whispered against Haley's ear, if Haley wanted to feel then damn it she was going to feel a hell of a lot. She slowly let her fingers travel up the slight contours that Haley's abdomen formed stopping right before she came to her breast. Rachel slowly planted soft kisses along the column of Haley's neck loving the soft gusts of breath coming from her lips.

Haley leaned her head back and let out a groan from feeling those lips on her neck. Her hands started playing in those gorgeous red locks. She wanted Rachel's mouth on her breasts so badly that she could feel herself moving the taller girl's head towards them. Rachel just smirked against Haley's skin as she felt her head being forced towards Haley's breasts. She couldn't complain, they were absolutely perfect and she couldn't wait to taste them. She didn't take the initiative to move her head she simply let Haley's hands guide her as she left butterfly kisses along the path her head was taking. She could feel the plumpness of Haley's breast as she drew closer and closer and for the love of hell they had to be the most perfect things that her mouth had ever had the pleasure of being on.

She took Haley's nipple into her mouth, swirling her tongue all over it, loving the moans and whimpers falling from Haley's lips. _She's never gonna need that booze again._ With that determination Rachel set on course to make Haley feel everything that she could ever wish for.


End file.
